Snickerdoodle Days

Photo Card

2011-12-07T19:38:00.001-05:00

Merry Montage Christmas

Shutterfly Christmas cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Countdown

2011-02-23T02:29:00.005-05:00

5 more sleeps to TingTing (AK's way of counting down)
4 packed suitcases (but I think we're going to have to suck it up and pay for 5 checked bags in China. It's HARD to pack for both snow and 75 degree temps, plus all the gear needed for a 3 year old and a 10 year old!)
3 excited people ( me, Mark, AK)
2 exhausted parents (Who needs sleep?? )
1 more day until we leave for CHINA and our Olivia Ruth YuTing!!

Olivia Day should be Monday, 2/28!!

If you want to follow our journey, please check out my new blog @

http://fromchinatonorthcarolina.blogspot.com

It's Here!!

2010-11-17T22:46:00.001-05:00

Our Letter of Approval arrived today!! It is so exciting to have the official adoption approval in hand. It is already on it's way back to China... no wasting time on moving forward!

We are anticipating traveling to China in later February or early March. Now we wait for immigration approvals from US*CIS and the Invitation to Travel from the CC*AA. I'm glad we have lots of holidays to distract us from more waiting since March seems awfully far away!

Anna Kathryn is ready to go get her sister now. We went out to dinner to celebrate (Cracker Barrel. Sure hope Olivia develops a taste for biscuits and chicken and dumplings!) and we told her at dinner. She got SO excited- her eyes got real big, and her mouth made an "o" and she just said, "Ohhhhhh, Ting Ting, my sister!"

The best part is... we can finally start communicating with our girl!!! And we believe the orphanage will tell her and begin to prepare her now, too. Please be praying for her as she begins to learn about us, and faces so many changes to come.

Off to scope out Care Package options now... woo hoo!

Introducing Olivia Ruth YuTing!

2010-10-11T22:21:00.000-04:00

We are THRILLED to announce (officially) that we are adopting again! We are planning to adopt a nine-year-old girl from Hunan Province, China, to be called Olivia Ruth YuTing. Yes, she's another Spicy Girl!!

Olivia is active and restless (exactly what AK's referral said about her-- and boy was that true!), enjoys playing games and singing, and is a good student. We cannot wait until we have our Referral Approval so we can finally begin communicating with her. We are so excited to add another daughter to our family, and Anna Kathryn is really looking forward to having another big sister-- and traveling to China to meet her.

It took about a year of adjustment for all three of us, but Mark and I began to seriously discuss adopting again last fall. However, we had no idea how we could afford to adopt again, and we originally felt led to request to adopt a child younger than Anna Kathryn.

Last January, I decided on a whim (so I thought) to look at our agency's waiting child list. When I saw Olivia's picture I felt my heart just leap; I began to cry and told Mark that I felt very drawn to this photo of a young girl with sparkling eyes and a shy smile. I wanted to know more about her. We prayed and agreed to take things a step at a time, as we felt the Lord leading us. The Lord kept opening the doors to proceed, including providing the first 1/3 of our adoption expenses so we could start gathering our documents and get our home study done. Gathering our paperwork has taken longer than we anticipated (honestly, doesn't it always??), but even in our impatience we are confident that the Lord's timing is perfect.

We sent our dossier to China on September 10 and were logged in on September 17, and now are waiting for all the remaining approvals. We are hoping that we will travel by the end of the year (miracles can happen!).

We are praying specifically that no matter when we do travel, we will be home before Olivia's 10th birthday in mid-February. As well as being an older child, Olivia has a manageable but significant medical need, and she has been waiting a very long time for a family. We feel a sense of urgency as we prepare to adopt her and bring her into the family.

Please join us in praying for Olivia as we prepare to bring her home, as she faces a huge number of changes and adjustments. We are also praying for a kindred spirit between her and Anna Kathryn; that Mark and I would be wise and compassionate as we deal with the parenting challenges before us and we walk through this new territory together.

We will keep you posted as we get closer to bringing Olivia home!

Two Years Ago...

2010-09-16T22:30:00.005-04:00

... we rejoiced over Anna Kathryn. In our arms. At last.

And today-- two short years later--

Today, she is even more firmly embedded in our hearts. Our home is noisy with laughter, games, reading, singing (and because she is a hard-headed toddler, a good bit of wailing), filled with toys, and always time for snuggling. Life continues to be SO GOOD with our Snickerdoodle.

The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing.

If you feel like a trip down memory lane, read about our first family day here.

Been a Long Time Gone...

2010-04-18T17:46:00.005-04:00

I know it's been a ridiculously long time since I posted, and this isn't even a current photo in the screen below! (It is one of my faves, though.) I am testing out this super-fun tool, VoiceThread, for a project at school that I am collaborating on with another teacher, and realized that I could post VoiceThreads here really easily . I made this in about 2 minutes, no joke, and uploaded it to Blogger in no time. This is the busy mom's way to blog: upload a photo, speak, and voila: a post! Hmmm, I may start blogging again after all!

Anyway, M and AK and I are having a wonderful spring. We are heading into the home stretch of another school year, I am finishing my third-to-last class for my Master's degree, and AK is potty training sloooooooowly. Busy days, for sure!

And, we have a few other things we are working on... but that's another post for another day!

Three Little Words

2009-11-12T20:28:00.004-05:00

Guess what they were?

For the first time, Anna Kathryn said the words to me in response, rather than being prompted.

I'd just laid her down in her crib after tooth brushing, two stories, bedtime prayers, and some milk. The past few nights we've had a popcorn and dance party after dinner. We pop some popcorn and watch all the songs on The J*ungle Book. (I'm going to try to catch some video of AK dancing this weekend because it is maybe the cutest thing EVER.)

Anyway, as I laid her down she said, "Pop? Jungle Book?"

I said, "We'll do it again tomorrow night. I love you."

And Anna Kathryn said, "I love you."

My mommy's heart absolutely overflowed. Wow. Such sweet words to hear. She said it!!

Edited to add: I just read this post. How blessed I am to be able to hear my daughter tell me she loves me! May I never take it for granted.

Happy Birthday, Anna Kathryn!

2009-11-03T22:53:00.005-05:00

Dear Anna Kathryn,

You are 2 years old today! We celebrated you today: with hugs and kisses, a cake, gifts, and more. Even though you were sick, and we had to change our plans to have a quiet day at home, you had a great day announcing that you are now two years old!

Somehow, that seems terribly old. Mommy thinks time is slipping by too fast.

Two years ago, it was all different for all of us. Daddy and I spent the day with family, at your cousin Natalie's memorial service. It was such a sad day... we cried a thousand tears. Halfway around the world, just as we said goodbye to our sweet Natalie, you were born. Your Aunt Hillary and I believe she was watching over you as you were born, and as your China mommy said goodbye to you, and as you waited to be found. We all lost part of our family that day, and yet, there was so much for us all to gain in the future. God had a very specific plan for us to become a family. Today I spent time talking with you a bit, about your China mommy and daddy, and how I think they are thinking of you today. How could they not? I thought of them all day long. I wish they could know what a wonder you are.

There were a few rather sassy moments today that may not bode well for the days to come, but I'm blaming that on the fever and yucky congestion. You definitely like to share your opinion and assert your independence whenever possible nowadays. You are helpful and sweet, and proudly ask for things by saying "please," "thank you," and even responding "yes, ma'am." You love reading books, and constantly demand, "Read, Mommy!" I happily oblige. Your babies are your favorite plaything these days, and you take very good care of them (other than letting them hang out naked a lot of the time!). Bobo, your lovey, is always with you in any situation. He is basically a member of the family these days. You already know your colors, that "A" is for Anna, and how to jump very high.

You are the utter delight of your daddy and me, every day. What joy to celebrate you in a special way today!

Love, Mommy

Pictures to come...

Happy Fall, Y'all!

2009-11-02T22:53:00.010-05:00

Well, October came and went in a blur of silly toddler moments, rainy & cool weather, and weekends that were just packed! Most of the really fun stuff -- or at least the stuff worthy of a photo opp- happened at the end of the month.

We visited the pumpkin patch on my birthday and had a fun time romping amidst the pumpkins and hay!

The girls with their choicest pumpkins.

I can jump now!

A hay maze, just the right size for the girls. Maggie zipped right through and AK kept up with her!

This year, AK wasn't quite as eager to be licked to death by the apparently starving goats and sheep in the petting zoo/barn.

The super sillies struck Anna Kathryn during our photo session:

Maggie might be immune to the sillies... or maybe she is just used to AK's wild ways!

Halloween was fun! Anna Kathryn really enjoyed it this year-- last year she was too little to really join in the fun. We had supper with Allison & co., then wrestled the girls into their costumes for trick-or-treating.

The lion says, "Roar!!"

AK's lion is a fancy lion-- note the necklace.

Costumed girls, ready to trick-or-treat!

(BTW, have to brag: I hit the costume jackpot at a local consignment store and paid just $7 for her lion costume! A frugal costume is just as fun as a pricey one!)

It didn't take AK long to get the hang of this.

I've got to figure out a way to upload some audio of AK saying, "trick-or-treat" and "thank you." Her voice is so high pitched and it is just the cutest. thing. ever.

She barely noticed that she was pouring sweat since it was about 78 degrees and 100% humidity on Halloween night.

Sweet reward.

I think I enjoyed the trick-or-treating as much-- or more-- than AK did. I absolutely loved seeing her get so excited about seeing the other kids in their costumes, asking so sweetly at each door, and riding with Maggie in the wagon. There are a lot of aspects of Halloween that Mark and I do not care for and work to avoid, but trick-or-treating was just plain fun.

Hope you had a great Halloween!

A Conversation

2009-09-30T22:11:00.006-04:00

On the way to day care this AM:

Me: "It's mocha day, Anna Kathryn! We're going to meet Maggie and Allison after I pick you up from school."

(Mocha Day, FYI, is our once-a-week outing to enjoy some girl talk and shopping at out local Star*bucks & Tar*get. We started weekly mochas when Allison was home with Maggie on maternity leave, as a way to help her avoid cabin fever, and this is Year 4 of the tradition.)

AK: "All-ah? (Asking if Allison would be at mochas.) Hoo-ray!"

Me: "That's right."

AK: "Hooray! Mah-mah?" (Maggie)

Me: "That's right."

AK: "Hoo-ray! Mommy?

Me: "That's right."

AK: Sucks Bobo. No hooray whatsoever.

Hee.

Arrival

2009-09-27T22:15:00.011-04:00

Last year at about this time we were sitting on the tarmac on Washington, D.C. on the last leg of our trip home from China, praying we would be home soon (we later found out our flight delay was due to the demo seat belt-- you know, the one they use during the safety info? Was missing and had to be replaced.)

Anna Kathryn had just become an American citizen upon crossing through customs, but I'm afraid the moment was kinda lost on all of us. I was desperate for a real American Starbucks mocha, Mark was desperate to get us all on the last plane since time was tight, and AK was desperate for a chance to wiggle and not be confined to a plane seat or lap.

After 30+ hours of travel, at the end of a two-week "trip of a lifetime" and having survived the transatlantic flight with a very mixed-up 11 month old baby-- we were so ready to be HOME.

We arrived at our home airport to a Welcome Home party like no other!

I'd joyfully welcomed Maggie home 2 years earlier, and of course had read plenty of blogs with accounts of other families' homecomings--- but ours was wonderful. Family and friends galore. Especially considering our flight was late and it was midnight before we landed... that's when you KNOW that you are greatly loved, when folks will spend their whole Saturday night hanging out at the airport for you.

Here's a bunch of homecoming photos I didn't post on my travel blog because I was too jet lagged to bother last year. Thanks for tripping down memory lane with me and the Snickerdoodle.

And then it was time to go home... to begin the next part, together.

I wish I could quit you, grad school

2009-09-22T00:13:00.004-04:00

I just spent waaaaay too many hours of my weekend and have stayed up much too late tonight finishing a totally mediocre paper for the MLS degree I hope to get before I am 87 years old.

Ugh. I loathe homework. That's one reason I became a school library media coordinator, which is why I am slogging through graduate school. Which is called irony, I believe.

On the other hand, BIG congratulations to my husband who just received his diploma for his Master's degree the other day! (He refused to go to graduation so they finally just mailed it to him. No matter, it's the real deal and he earned every bit of it.)

I'm so jealous! And proud!!!

Toddler Parenting FAIL (and the rest of Forever Family Day anniversary)

2009-09-20T22:16:00.011-04:00

So this weekend it finally hit me that Anna Kathryn is into EVERYTHING and cannot be left alone for even one minute or else disaster will befall us.

Little Miss Curiosity, lunging for the camera

Just last week I could leave her playing in the living room (or dumping out a drawer in the bathroom, more likely) while I dashed into the laundry room to move a load of towels, or into the kitchen to check on dinner, or something like that. We've child proofed the house so we're good, right? And it's an open floor plan of only 1600 sq. feet so it's not like she's far away from me at any moment. Generally she follows me around the house as I do things anyway, but lately she's been adding a dash of independence to her big girl skillz.

Apparently I am also a slow learner in the supervision category of motherhood.

Yesterday, I was doing a load of her clothes, which means everything needs to be blasted with at least 3 different stain removers. My laundry room is A.) teensy and B.) has horrible lighting, so I usually do this on the dining room table where the lighting is good. I had a brand-new, BIG jug of color safe bleach out on the table, and stepped away for maybe a minute when Mark called out to me from the bedroom.

Did I mention one of AK's hobbies these days is climbing up into the dining room chairs, and sometimes the table too? Oh, and she's suddenly back to putting everything in her mouth again?

So it should come as no surprise that I walked out of my bedroom to see AK coated in purple C*lorox 2, along with my table and some of the carpet below. (Yes, we have a carpeted dining area, and yes, I detest it.) Sigh. At least the spots are now gone from that part of the carpet.

And at least she didn't ingest any of it. I spent the rest of the day with one eye glued to her doings and chasing her around the house.

So today, I'm loading the dishwasher and AK is of course attached to my leg. I opened the (locked, childproofed) cabinet to get the detergent, poured it into the little cup, and immediately capped the bottle and shoved it back into the cabinet because I don't want her to get into it. Forgot to close the little cup... and I turned back towards her (this is just seconds, people) to see her take her fingers out of her mouth and make a horrible face.

Oh, no.

After I ran around frantically trying to decide if I should try to make her drink something, find the ipecac syrup (which we do not even have), or just head to the ER, I remembered what 911 is for. They referred me to p*oison control, where the rather jovial worker assured me that she probably had ingested an extremely small amount, told me to give her lots of fluids, and that this happens more often than you'd think. We spent the next 30 minutes eating popsicles and drinking water, and I said a lot of prayers of thanksgiving that she seemed to be fine. An hour later she was running around on the playground, and she ate a ton of dinner tonight.

I'd heard from other moms that if the house if ever quiet that usually is a sign that something is up with the kids. Lesson learned!

Here are a few snaps from the weekend and our Forever Family Day celebration last week:

Chillin' with Elmo

On the move

Little Mama

Opening her Family Day gifts

We looked back at the photo album that we got of some "outtakes" from her referral pictures and the pictures we were sent in her update last Aug. She got a big kick out of seeing herself as a baby.

This was the outfit she was wearing when she was brought to us in Nanchang. It was a bit big on her last year. She has grown-- and grown up- so much in the past year! Love that smile!

Happy Forever Family Day!

2009-09-16T21:17:00.017-04:00

It's our first anniversary of our Gotcha Day today! That was such a whirlwind day...

... from waking up in our hotel in Nanchang and nervously waiting in the room all morning for fear of missing that knock on the door that meant that the babies were here.

The first moment I saw Anna Kathryn and our guide Sally said to me, which baby is yours? Um, the pressure! They had two Bo babies, and I knew which one was AK immediately, but was still afraid of picking the wrong baby! Then, the sweetest moment: the handover...

Mark delighting in his newest, long-awaited daughter.

The first chance to really look at her, hold her, begin to know her instead of just the idea of her.

Mark and I got some more time to play with Anna Kathryn while we waited at the various government offices to complete the adoption and do her paperwork for her passport.

After a bottle for AK, lunch and a nap, we were whisked off for all the official paperwork. Anna Kathryn seemed a bit curious about us, but not overly upset at suddenly being placed in the arms of total strangers. She had traveled for nearly 4 hours and it had been a big day for her already: her first trip out of the orphanage, new parents and an afternoon of errands, basically. She was most interested in the toys we showed her and her surroundings. She loves to investigate and examine everything and that day was no exception!

Now I can look back and see that the look in her eyes was very detached. She did not melt down or shut down as many babies do when introduced to their new families, but understandably was trying to make sense of this huge transition and change from the familiar to the completely unknown. She came to us with only the clothes she was wearing. I can't even imagine what was going through her head, although from the first she seemed to recognize that we belonged to her and she to us.

On that day, we saw the plans we had made, and the plans the Lord had for us, come together in the most beautiful way. Just as we come before God and are adopted by him to be his child, though we have nothing to give him but our love and trust-- it was the same for us with Anna Kathryn. She was just herself. And she was now our child. While I loved her from the first day she was a hope in my heart, that was nothing compared to that moment she was placed in my arms. And it's just grown each day of the last year.

No surprise here-- Mark coaxed the first smile from our stoic little baby!

Unlike most families, our "harmonious period" was just a few hours instead of the usual 24 hours. This is supposed to give the adoptive family a brief time in which to get to know your child a bit and note if there are any unexpected issues. However, due to the holiday (we traveled during the Mid-Autumn Festival) we got AK a day later than planned, so the whole process was compressed into a few hours. She arrived in our hotel room just after 11 am and we were done around 4 PM with all the paperwork.

I was so excited and emotions ran so high I remember few details of the afternoon, but we truly had no concerns and answered "yes" confidently when asked by the notary if we found our child to be "satisfactory". The two things I remember distinctly is the feel of her gums as she chewed on my finger as we careened through the crazy Nanchang traffic in the van, and the elation and relief when Sally told us that the adoption was final and we were officially a family!

We didn't attempt a bath the first night but we did change her out of the sleeper she had worn all day and put her into clean jammies. Before that we played a bit on the bed. She seemed to love the freedom of no clothes-- and all the attention! She was relaxed and reasonably content, and fell asleep in my arms soon after we took this picture.

What a day! Scary, exhilarating, hectic, joyful. If you want to read more about it, my post from our travel journal is here.

Today we had a fairly regular day. I had a ridiculously crazy day at work, Mark had to work late, and AK and I met Allison for our weekly mochas and shopping at Target. I spent several moment throughout the day remembering last Sept. 16 and wiping away a tear here and there. Every day I am so thankful and grateful for the gift and blessing of being Anna Kathryn's mommy.

We plan to celebrate as a family tomorrow. Tomorrow morning is our one-year post-placement visit and we took the day off, so we have a family outing and then dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant planned for the afternoon. We bought gifts for future Gotcha Days in China, but AK is too young for them just yet, so this year she is getting the DVD "Big Bird in China" and the book "Moonbeams, Dumplings, and Dragon Boats.

And here is our Snickerdoodle, one year later:

Happy forever family day to all of our travel buddies today! What an amazing year of blessings we have had!!

One Year Ago, Yesterday

2009-09-12T22:18:00.006-04:00

China, here we come!

This time last year Mark and I were embarking on the greatest adventure of our married life... our journey to China to adopt Anna Kathryn. We left our home on September 11 and arrived in Beijing on September 12, weary from travel, somewhat nervous about what lay ahead, but so excited to at last set foot in our daughter's homeland. We were mindful of the sad anniversary of the attacks on America but not particularly anxious about flying on that date. After 2 1/2 years of the tedious adoption process, and several additional years of trying to build our family, we didn't care when we left for China as long as it was sooner rather later! We were SO ready to meet our girl!

This year I find myself thinking daily of "what-we-were-doing-this-time-last-year" and I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I'd LOVE to make the trip again. During all the years of waiting not only did I anticipate the joy of finally being a mom, and holding Anna Kathryn at last, but I really couldn't wait for The Trip itself. I love to travel and getting to explore another country is so much fun. Although the trip certainly had its stresses-- becoming a new mom in a foreign country is not for wimps!-- it was an amazing way to learn about China firsthand.

I feel so lucky to have had the chance to experience some of AK's birthplace and heritage, and to gain a greater appreciation of her homeland, during those few short weeks. We are already praying that we will have the opportunity to return with AK someday so she can experience China for herself.

I still sometimes have to give AK an extra squeeze, just to reassure myself that she's here with us at last. The days of tears and barrenness are past. The uncertainty of The Wait is now a dim memory. The past year has truly flown by-- can't think of a better (if hackneyed) way to put it. Being AK's mom is the joy of my life and raising her is a blessing and privilege I do not take for granted.

September 13, 2008

Touring Beijing and the Great Wall was amazing (there is no other word to use, seriously) , but the best part of the trip was still ahead...

Isaiah 43:5

⁵ Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your children from the east
and gather you from the west.

Just One Year

2009-07-13T22:22:00.006-04:00

...ago today we got The Call. It was a hot and sticky July Sunday afternoon and Mark and I were napping after church.

The house phone rang. We ignored it.

My cell phone rang. I pretended I couldn't hear it.

Mark's cell phone rang. I began to wonder if there was some kind of emergency. I dragged myself out of my comfy nest and went to see who wanted to talk to us so much.

It was a family coordinator with our agency: "Mark and Kimberly, we think we have a baby for you..." I almost didn't make it through the call I was crying so hard. It almost didn't seem real, that we were finally getting the Call we had hoped and prayed for for so long.

Within minutes we opened up an e-mailed file and saw the face of our daughter for the very first time. We knew immediately.

She was tiny.

She was beautiful.

She would be ours.

On the one year anniversary of the referral of our daughter-- and every day--we are so thankful for the blessing of her. It's hard to remember the time before we saw her face, knew her Chinese name, held her in our arms. I remember the pain of the wait, but now it's like this dull ache; I can recall it but the pain is no longer acute. We have days of great joy and times of challenge, but always, always love life with our Snickerdoodle.

Well I just heard the news today

It seems my life is going to change

I closed my eyes, begin to pray

Then tears of joy stream down my face

With arms wide open

Under the sunlight

Welcome to this place

I'll show you everything

With arms wide open

- With Arms Wide Open by Creed

Anna Kathryn BoDi

July 11, 2009

If you want to read the whole story, click here!

Spring Break Rewind: Beach Baby

2009-05-28T21:21:00.005-04:00

And now for a much brighter subject-- Anna Kathryn's first trip to the beach. When we were in Florida last month visiting my parents, we spent the day in St. Augustine doing some of our favorite things... eating delicious Spanish and Cuban food at the Columbia Restaurant, and browsing the shops on St. George St. in the historic district. Once AK had her fill of shops and the stroller, we headed out to the beach to introduce her to sand and surf. Anna Kathryn had a great time playing in the sand and discovering the waves and water. She quickly became a fan of beach life!

The ground feels kinda funny... but I like it.

Checking out the water

C'mon in -- the water's fine!

Time for a beach stroll

Heading into the ocean again... and again...

One, two, three, whee!!

Checking out the sand-- Anna Kathryn also discovered how much fun it is to fling it

Hanging out with Daddy

We can't wait to go back!

Frustration/ ramblings

2009-05-26T15:22:00.012-04:00

I have a bunch of much-more-fun blog posts swirling in my head, including our Memorial Day weekend, which was spent with my sister's family, my parents, and assorted family friends to celebrate my beautiful niece Alie's christening. Unfortunately, I am home today, sick with a gross sinus infection and feeling too frustrated to do anything but list my grievances on here. Feel free to skip this one if you are in the mood for something brighter.

I am getting back on the Master's Degree wagon during the summer session. (I took off the past two semesters to be able to fully focus on the L'il Snickerdoodle.) Unfortunately, when I was re-admitted, my university gave me a whole new identity: passwords, ID numbers, e-mail addresses, the whole bit. Unfortunately, they neglected to tell me or my department about this so I have spent the last 3 weeks trying to get my registration, payment for classes, and everything else sorted out-- long-distance (I'm doing my degree online). I think the wagon is driving over me right now.

The latest wrinkle is that I still haven't been able to log in to my classes because they have to assign me a new password, and classes started a week ago. Last Friday I was told that I had to send them a picture of myself to get this passphrase. So I sent it and left for the weekend. Of course the university was closed yesterday, and I was feeling too rotten to care about this mess. So today I find that I had an e-mail from the helpdesk saying that I was supposed to e-mail a picture ID -- I guess that's the obvious thing to do but since Tech Guy didn't specify this I just e-mailed a snapshot of myself. I could feel my head about to explode as I read the e-mail. I sent off another e-mail this time with my driver's license scanned in -- we shall see if this works. (Added: they sent me a new passphrase which DOESN'T WORK. AAAARRRGH!)

At this point class has been in session for a week and I still haven't been able to log in, much less get started-- I can't even think about how behind I already am. I'd love to think that this was a sign from God that I should quit this degree program and just stay at home full-time with AK. A lot of my frustration comes from wanting to do that, but unfortunately, it's just not going to happen now.

Also, this is one of the busiest times of the year as we wind down the school year. For me it means inventory and lots of reports to compile, as well as special events and continuing to work with teachers and students on a somewhat limited basis. Having to miss 3 days of work in a row is not helping my tendency to worry about getting everything done by the last workday. Mark is super-busy too, and we both are pretty wiped out when we get home these days. I'm trying to manage the stress of this plus my graduate class situation, but I'm struggling a bit. I wish it was June 12 --our last workday-- now!

I had to make a big decision the other day. I feel so much better now that it's been made, but am not sure how it will all play out. A bit more stress.

AK has hit a really cute stage (more on that later). She is also in a challenging stage-- since what she wants to do much of the time is challenge us. Her new favorite word is "no". And she loves to use it whenever she is not in the mood to do something or just wants to "feel the power." Of course, I find myself telling "no" myself an awful lot these days. She is into everything-- even the stuff I thought I had childproofed. I love her insatiable curiosity but the tidy, safety-conscious mama in me tends to cringe at some of her "discoveries", and habit of pulling things apart.

Of all things, brushing her teeth is the biggest battle. She loves to do it herself, but when it's time for one of us to do the actual brushing, it's a fight. She clamps her lips together and shakes her head back and forth. She tried saying "no" but that gave me an entry point to try to get in her mouth. Usually the battle ends in wailing and much gnashing of teeth on both our parts! Her techniques for avoiding the toothbrush would be hilarious if it weren't soooooo frustrating. It's been so tough for me dealing with her that most nights Mark is now in charge of tooth brushing (go Mark!).

I read a quote recently that adults are basically toddlers with their self-centeredness, selfishness, and lack of understanding that it's not all about them-- just with better manners and some civility added. I thought that was a great description. (I've met plenty of adults who are harder to deal with than a toddler). Of course, this leaves out all the fun parts of toddlerhood: the cuddles, drooly kisses, the ability to turn everything into a game, that same curiosity as they discover the world around them, the new words and skills every week, hearing "Mama!" said with such excitement and joy, watching her romp with her daddy. Definitely puts things into perspective.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T22:25:00.008-04:00

...and it was!! My first Mother's Day was just wonderful. Definitely a big improvement over the past few years, when I generally hid out at home with Mark. Mother's Day was just so difficult and such a painful reminder of what I longed more more than anything through all the years of fertility treatments and the long wait to adopt. I loved honoring our mothers and grandmothers, but with everyone living so far away the day just seemed empty, and a sad reminder of my lack of motherhood.

Three years ago today, we had just worked through the devastation of an unsuccessful year and a half on the fertility roller coaster. We knew it was time, at last, to turn towards adoption with our whole hearts. We spent parts of Mother's Day excitedly looking through packets and watching DVDs from various agencies which facilitate international adoption. By the end of the afternoon we had settled on a country and an agency. On that hopeful, optimistic, Mother's Day, in my wildest dreams, I never could have envisioned the sheer joy that this has brought to my life:

But as with all things, that which does not come easily is much sweeter once it is ours.

This day was leisurely. We ended up not going to church, because AK was up in the night for a long time and Mark ended up staying up til all hours with her. I let them sleep in -- AK slept until 10:20! Mark fixed a big breakfast, and then we just hung out, played and did a few things around the house. Mark and Anna Kathryn had cards and gifts for me (a coupon book for all kinds of treats: everything from a massage to a week off from the dishes!)Our big outing was to the grocery store. After lunch, AK and Mark napped, and I spent a blissful few hours reading a novel and the Sunday paper.

Mark and Anna Kathryn fixed a yummy dinner: and then we went for a walk and chatted with the neighbors after calling all of the moms and grandmothers to wish them a Happy Mother's Day.

Maybe no one will notice...

...if I munch on this raw piece of sweet potato!

My two chefs

This day was filled with ordinary things, but it was wonderful nevertheless. My husband and my daughter showered me with love all day. Truly, my best gift came when I went into Anna Kathryn's room to wake her, and she looked at me and said, "Mama!"

What I have longed to hear for so long, to be for so long. I don't forget the days of painful waiting, and the tears of Mother's Days in the past. But I rejoice in the present and our gift from God: Anna Kathryn. My dream has come true.

Eighteen Months Old!

2009-05-03T21:33:00.006-04:00

Anna Kathryn at eighteen months...

Still a great eater and now an expert at using her sippy cup

Always ready for playtime!

Wants most everything HER way and does not like hearing "No."

She does not hesitate to express her displeasure at having her plans thwarted.

(She is, however, getting better at dealing with her frustration-- we have been working on this.)

Enjoys being in charge of her stuff. Even if it's a lot bigger than she is. Besides, strollers are for babies.

ALWAYS on the go!

Giggly, silly, funny, chatty, and the joy of our lives.

Spring Break part 3: Beauty Parlor

2009-04-26T21:08:00.008-04:00

Anna Kathryn, Nana, and Pop-pop

December 2008

Anna Kathryn also had lots of time with her grandparents (my parents) during our trip. Nana and Pop-pop are two of her very favorite people and she just reveled in all the attention and love they lavished on her. My dad does the thing where he pops his cheek to make Anna Kathryn giggle. We call that "pop-popping," since that's also what all the grandchildren (well, the one that talks-- my niece, Emily!) call him. Anna Kathryn very quickly picked up on this trick and will imitate him; if we talk to my dad on the phone that's what she does to indicate that she knows she's talking to him. In fact, all we have to do is say "Pop-pop" and she pops her cheek. She loves to read stories with her grandfather, snuggle on his lap. show him her treasures, and look at his very cool model train layout.

A special thing happened while we were with my folks over Easter: Anna Kathryn said "Nana" for the first time! My mom was SO excited. Anna Kathryn loves to play games, read stories and do puzzles on the floor with my mom. Her very favorite thing to do with my mom is to ride on Nana's lap on her scooter. (When she sees people on a scooter or in a wheelchair now, she always says "Nana!").

So when Anna Kathryn decided it was time to play beauty partner, she had very willing victims, er, customers in Nana and Pop-pop.

Once Pop-pop was handsomely styled, it was time for Nana's makeover. It is apparently necessary to chew on one's favorite towel as one does hair!

Off topic (at least as far as spring break goes): head over to Allison's blog to see all the fun Anna Kathryn and Maggie had yesterday! It's beginning to feel a lot like summer!!

Spring Break part 2: A Tea Party

2009-04-23T22:17:00.007-04:00

We are so blessed to have been able to spend two days of our visit with my grandparents. Mamapa and Grandaddy are the foundation of our family and we are blessed by their leadership and love for all of us! We haven't seen them since Christmas, so it was especially nice to have time now to visit with them. They of course noticed right away how much Anna Kathryn has changed and grown up since Christmas-- she is now walking (often running), talking more, and definitely wants her own way in things! She had a terrific time playing with and entertaining them.

One of my favorite family stories is about the day my younger sister was born. I was 2 1/2 them and spent the day with Mamapa while my mom labored at the hospital with my dad alongside her. Family lore has it that I hosted an all day tea party, and Mamapa drank cup after cup of imaginary tea to entertain me. If it had been real tea she would have been floating away by the day's end!

Anna Kathryn's favorite toy right now is her tea set (complete with a British-voiced singing tea pot), so she carried on the family tradition by having a tea party of her own with Mamapa and Grandaddy. They enthusiastically joined in the fun!

Would you like a spot of tea?

I'll pour, Granddaddy!

Try the cakes, too; I hear the chocolate is the tastiest.

Mamapa, I think you need a refill.

This tea is delicious!

Why, I will take another cup, thank you! This stuff's better than apple juice!

A happy hostess and beloved great-granddaughter.

Spring Break part 1: Easter Sunday

2009-04-20T20:47:00.005-04:00

We enjoyed a short but relaxing spring break in Florida with my parents and grandparents last week. We enjoyed the first day of our holiday on Good Friday, and spent the day at home doing chores, hanging out, and playing with Anna Kathryn.

Saturday, after The Longest Car Ride Ever, we arrived at my folks' house. We had a joyful reunion with my parents and grandparents, whom we hadn't see since Christmas. Mom let AK sip some of her Vitamin Water (sounds healthy, right?) and we watched AK run in circles for about an hour. Apparently there is much sugar and corn syrup along with the vitamins in Vitamin Water, plus she'd been cooped up for the past 11 hours. Whew. Think we'll be sticking to apple juice from now on.

Sunday morning arrived and with it Easter! We skipped sunrise service, opting for a little extra sleep. Not much extra, since Anna Kathryn was up, bright and early, at 5:45 a.m. We had a blessed and relaxing day celebrating the Resurrection as a family. I of course had AK's Easter ensemble planned to the last detail. She looked so cute! It was a different Easter service for me, since I spent it in the nursery with Anna Kathryn, who was more wiggly than usual in church. She was able to make it until Children's Church, so I got to enjoy the music, but missed the sermon. After church we feasted on ham and all the side dishes, watched movies, took a walk, played with all the "new" toys in Nana's toy closet, and enjoyed a family day together.

Happy Easter!

Visiting with friends at Dad's church.

We attempted to take a "four generations" picture of my mom, Mamapa (my grandmother), me and Anna Kathryn... as usual, the results are more hilarious than frame-worthy.

Attempt #1. Anna Kathryn decides to examine the tree.

Attempt#2: Anna Kathryn is not really into the photo shoot. Escape is on her agenda.

Attempt #3: Oh well, it was worth a try!

Oooh, for me??

My mom, aka Nana, is the Queen of the Easter Basket. For a couple of reasons, we ended up not doing a real Easter basket for Anna Kathryn this year. My mom, though is a firm believer in the Easter Basket and always is prepared for surprises for little ones. She had some goodies and so did I. We combined our loot and Anna Kathryn had a great time digging in the basket to find all of her treats.

Sharing her Cheerios with Pop-Pop. I just love this picture!

On the mend

2009-03-23T21:50:00.006-04:00

Anna Kathryn is feeling much better! Thanks for all of your prayers and well-wishes. They definitely helped, because she was well on the way to recovery by Saturday afternoon. We decided that a quiet weekend at home was the best thing for her, so here are a few snapshots from the weekend.

Of course, the fact that Anna Kathryn was roaming around the house gnawing on a cold pancake after a very short nap was not one of my finer parenting moments...

I did feed her a real lunch after this. Note that jammies were the preferred outfit for much of the weekend!

Are we having fun yet??

Famous last words

2009-03-19T21:10:00.005-04:00

A couple of nights ago, Mark and I were chatting before bed and I casually mentioned that winter was practically over and weren't we lucky that Anna Kathryn had been so healthy this winter.

Clearly, the wrong thing to say.

The flu germs hanging around our neck of the woods heard this comment and decided to show us who's boss.

Poor Anna Kathryn is down with a bad case of the flu, a double ear infection, and really icky, gunky eyes. Poor baby spent most of today in my lap running a big old fever, sucking on her towel, and dozing in my arms. She even watched TV for a bit (I put in "Annie," a childhood favorite of mine. I figure this is a good time to watch it before AK catches on that it's a movie about orphans and asks questions I still need to figure out really good answers to.) This is unprecedented behavior for her, since usually she is too busy to do a lot of cuddling. Well, except at nap and bedtime. She normally does want to sit in my lap and read books, but today had zero interest in her books. It was all about Mama's lap!

I feel so bad for her, because she obviously felt so bad. But the cuddling -- well, I'll take that any day!! Please pray that Mark and I do not succumb to the Plague! (I did get a flu shot but he didn't.) And, that Anna Kathryn is on the mend soon.

The Whirl of Gaiety

2009-03-09T21:56:00.008-04:00

Back in December when I went back to work, that first week I actually thought, "This working mom gig isn't so bad. I can juggle it all-- no problem!" I think that was on day three, which was the first day I didn't break down in tears at some point on the way to or from work. (I may also have had a wee glass of wine, which is relaxing but apparently makes me overconfident.)

So. Three months later and I am still juggling just as fast as I can. Some weeks go better than others. Sometimes my house is cleaner than others, and some weeks I make it through more of the to-do list than others. I struggle with feeling a certain amount of performance pressure at work and many days wish I just didn't have to deal with it.

If I could, I'd stay home full-time with AK in a split second. I know I'm a good mom, and it's what I truly love to do. I struggle with the fact that by the end of a long and busy workday, there's just not as much of me-- or the best of me-- left to give my family. But it truly isn't possible for us right now (and given the state of the economy it might never happen) so I am trying hard to be content right where I am. You know, that whole "attitude of gratitude." So I'm:

Thankful that AK has a good daycare to go to where she feels comfortable and happy.
Thankful that we have a home, and jobs, when so many have lost theirs.
Thankful that I do work that is meaningful and that I have wanted to do since I was little. Although when I was little I thought librarians got to read books all day and that was their whole job.
Thankful that when I've had a tiring or icky day I get to go home to my husband and daughter. There has not been a bad day that wasn't totally improved by seeing AK grin and giggle when she sees me.
Thankful that Mark shooed me out of the house for a few hours on Saturday for a mom's day out. I treated myself to a pedicure, since we have had flip-flop weather all weekend, and did some shopping at one of my favorite stores. I took advantage of a deal they ran this past week (I donated 2 pairs of pants, which they will donate to Goodwill, and got $15 dollars off of each of 2 new pairs of pants), and a coupon I had and got some new things for spring and summer. Mark had given me a gift certificate for Christmas so this was a chance to put it to good use. I had sooooo much fun and came home feeing rejuvenated.

So. I'm trying. I know every mom feels stretched and I am one of many who work outside the home but still strive to be an effective and Godly homemaker, wife, mother as well.

Our calendar continues to be busy. In addition to a demanding workweek ahead for me, we just had our six-month post placement visit today.

All went well, although I should remember by now that our homestudy agency always has us write a super-long report answering many questions about our lives, and then we will answer all of those same questions in person for the social worker. The HS office never forwards our paperwork to her either, so I end up giving her a copy. I am also never told in advance to have x number of copies of various documents and then spend a lot of the visit pawing through an expanding file looking for the one document that seems to have gone missing, and then find it tucked into one of our document booklets. Sigh.

It was a good visit overall and I think our SW really enjoyed meeting AK in person after all these years of meeting with us throughout the adoption process. I certainly talked my head off-- our SW is a truly sweet lady and my tendency to overshare goes into overdrive at these sorts of things. I also did some extra housekeeping this weekend just in case although at this point we've adopted our child and surely a little extra dust won't change that. I've been trying to whip our perpetually messy guest bedroom/office/scrapbook room (aka "The Pit of Despair") into shape and get to the bottom of a huge pile of filing so this gave me incentive to actually do this.

We enjoyed the beautiful weather the past few days-- sunny, temps in the 70's-- and are bracing ourselves for the next little remnant of winter coming our way this weekend. This weather pattern is exactly like it was in March of 2003 when we got married. The weekend before the wedding was gorgeous, and then the day of it was 50 degrees and poured rain all day. All that to say our 6th wedding anniversary is Sunday, six months anniversary of Gotcha Day is on Monday, and my mom, sister, and nieces are coming for an impromptu visit this weekend.

Oh, and now that we are back on Daylight Savings Time I want to stay up til midnight and suddenly can't seem to get dinner on the table before 6:45, because it's so sunny outside.

Whew! I think this post may have ended up being a mini-therapy session. I feel better now.

Busy Week

2009-02-26T21:29:00.006-05:00

Our annual Book Fair is this week at school-- along with Open House (Tuesday night), Battle of the Books practice (Monday afternoon; I am the coach), a faculty meeting yesterday (left school at 6:00 pm), and AK and I had our weekly mochas with Allison and Maggie today. So I have been busy, busy, busy and too pooped to post. In fact, I've been almost too tired at night to get on the computer... almost, but not quite. Gotta feed my addiction and keep up with my favorite blogs!

Here are a few more snapshots from a recent trip to the park!

Oh boy-- a mountain to climb!

I can do it!

Is that the summit already?
Queen of all I survey....
Mama, are you taking ANOTHER picture of me?
This is kinda high...
I'm not giving up! I will conquer this mountain. It will be my greatest accomplishment ever.
Ooooh, this plastic rock feels so nice.
Maybe I need to taste the rock for the complete experience!

Five

2009-02-16T20:36:00.010-05:00

Five months ago today, in a hotel room in Nanchang, China, I opened the door to this sight:

There are several events in my life that have, in a sense, divided my life into "before" and "after"... this was the most important one of my life. At last, I was seeing my daughter. At last, holding her. Playing with her. Feeding her. Knowing her.

Five months ago, I could only dream of the life I have today. They were sweet dreams, but the reality is so much more. Being Anna Kathryn's mom is my dream come true. What a difference five months makes!

Here are five of my favorite pictures from the past five months!

This was the second or third day AK was with us, (sadly, our trip is already beginning to blur a little) September 2008.

Her first book, September 2008.

"I think I can, I think I can... feed myself!" October 2008.

A nature walk on Veteran's Day with Daddy and Mama, November 2008.

Romping at the playground, February 2009.

Our Valentine

2009-02-14T19:16:00.007-05:00

Anna Kathryn made the giant card for us in daycare. She is so proud of her efforts! We've had a nice and relaxing first Valentine's Day as a family of 3. She's tucked in for the night and now it's time for Mama and Daddy to have some time together! A movie, bottle of wine, and cheesecake with fresh strawberries are waiting...

Anna Kathryn's First Haircut...

2009-02-11T21:05:00.009-05:00

... well, at least the first one since she came home with us.

This is a fun place to hang out with Daddy! He got a haircut. Doesn't he look handsome?

What? I'm getting a haircut too?

I'm not too sure about this...

Haircut, schmaircut. Are we done yet?

No more haircut!! I don't like this at all! I object!!!

I feel pretty now! And I have a cute puppy to play with. This is fun again!

Mama said there'd be days like this

2009-02-10T21:30:00.009-05:00

This is what happens when Mama gets distracted and in a rush. Or, the way things normally run at the House of the Snickerdoodle.

Tuesday, 5:45 AM: Alarm rings. I roll over and mentally start running through the day's schedule. Yesterday was kinda blah, hoping today goes better. Drag self out of comfy, cozy bed.

5:58 AM: I put in my contact lenses. and do not realize that the right one isn't all the way in my eye. Feel lens on eyelashes and automatically blink. Hear lens hit the sink. Know instantly that it's gone down the drain. 10 minutes of searching with a flashlight proves my intuition is correct. (I have had a new pair of lenses for only 10 days, and I wear gas permeable lenses, which have to be special ordered. $50 down the drain, literally).

7:31 AM: Driving Anna Kathryn to day care, since I will be taking her to the pediatrician for a well baby checkup later in the afternoon. Mark calls me, panicked, since I have apparently taken both sets of car keys to the other car with me, and he is stranded.

7:34 AM: Mark calls me to say that Allison can swing back by the house and give him a ride to school. Yay! This will save me an extra half-hour of driving, on top of the hour it takes me to get to work when I take AK, since her day care is the opposite direction from my school. Thank goodness.

9:35 AM: At work. Literally sitting down for a long-planned and very necessary meeting with a co-worker. Said co-worker is pulled away due to big emergency event.

10:00 AM: I manage to drop our inventory scanner on the floor and have a few panicked moments while I reinsert the battery and make sure it works. It does, thankfully. A replacement would be about $1700 and it's not in this year's budget!

3:15 PM: I make it to AK's day care in record time and find out she's had a good day. Finally, good news!

3:55 PM: Arrive at the dr.'s office, after a restoring detour at Starbucks for an iced coffee. Find out this is just a visit with a nurse for more immunizations, not the checkup I thought we had scheduled. Oh. I had kinda been planning to ask if we can save this round of vaccinations for the next visit, since poor little AK just assumes by now that every visit to the doctor will involve pain due to shots or bloodwork, and acts accordingly. So much for that idea.

5:01 PM: 2 shots, one hour, and a good deal of crying later, finally exit doctor's office.

5:15 PM: Arrive home. Mark calls and says he's invited Allison and Maggie for dinner. I get AK and all our gear inside and start pulling out stuff for dinner.

5:30 PM: I reach into an upper cabinet to get a bowl out. CRASH. I manage to knock a small Pyrex bowl out of the cabinet and it shatters into smithereens on the counter and floor, and the stove, which already has a-- not covered-- pan of rice cooking.

5:32 PM: As, I sweep and vacuum, Mark suggests pizza for dinner. No arguing here! He offers to go get it, which is fine by me, since disaster is following me today. And then he makes my evening 100% better by playing with the girls and doing the whole bath and bedtime routine with Anna Kathryn while I sat on the sofa with Allison, yakking and watching Inside Edition while eating Moose Tracks ice cream (which is clinically proven to improve any bad day). What a guy!!

It really wasn't such a bad day, really. Just full of calamity and disagreeable things. Anne of Green Gables would call it a Jonah day.

On days like this, it's nice to end it with moments like this one:

(Yes, I got a haircut. It's short again and I am so very happy. It's not lookin' so pretty in this picture, though. More on haircuts in an upcoming post!)

Happy Chinese New Year!

2009-01-27T20:50:00.014-05:00

Gong Hay Fat Choy! Chun Jie Kuai Le!

Happy New Year!!

We had a fun first Chinese New Year as a family. This is the big holiday in China --also known as the Spring Festival, since the weather is supposed to warm up after CNY. It's now the Year of the Ox in China. I wonder what this year will bring, since AK was born in the Year of the Pig, and the Year of the Rat was when she came home to us.

The day itself was pretty ordinary-- it was a teacher workday for us, so I took the day off and scheduled several appointments for me and Mark. AK went to daycare because all of our appointments were definitely no fun for a one-year-old, which means it would be nearly impossible for the parents of the one-year-old to get everything done! Mark ended up going in to school for a couple of hours anyway, so we met at lunch and had a productive afternoon.

I have to admit, we were pretty light on the CNY traditions this year. Honestly, we just don't have the time or budget right now to do a lot of extras and some of my ideas had to be put on the back burner for another year. Fortunately, AK is really too young to be super-interested in holiday books, movies and decorations, or to help me make treats and crafts. I'm glad we have years ahead to add to our CNY traditions! I thought we had a great celebration anyway, because we spent it with Allison, David and Maggie last night.

In honor of the holiday, AK wore her red "Made in China" t-shirt to "school" (we bought it in Guangzhou and it's barely been worn so it's practically new, despite the fact that I managed to get bleach on the side of the shirt-- not too noticeable) to "school" and I wore a favorite red turtleneck sweater. We headed over to the Maladys for supper and festivity, in the form of playing with the girls, watching the CNY episode of "Ni H*ao, Kai-L*an" and just hanging out. We ate a yummy dinner of orange beef, Hunan chicken, sticky rice, spring rolls, Jiaozi (dumplings), and Buddha's Delight. (Yay for take-out!! No cooking is a fabulous holiday!!)

The girls got red envelopes with the traditional gift of money from Allison and David, and my mom sent along little red silk boxes with money in them as her CNY gift to them. They were excited to open all their loot! (Thanks, Nana!!)

After dinner, Allison and I thought it would be fun to get the girls dressed in their silk dresses and have a little photo shoot. Maggie, who is 3 and generally a very compliant child, bounced upstairs and had her dress on in a flash. AK, who was incredibly overtired due to a big weekend, a long day at daycare, and only a half hour nap, began pitching a royal fit as soon as Mark and I started wrestling her into her dress. Turned out that I missed opening a snap and a zipper, and the dress probably was squeezing her a bit. Ooops. Also, she has apparently outgrown her size 1 silk outfits and now wears a size 2. Thank goodness I brought a backup outfit!

The photo session was as usual, a real show...

Could they BE any cuter?? (Go visit Allison's blog for more cuteness!)

Sorta Wordless Wednesday

2009-01-21T20:23:00.006-05:00

Recently overheard at the House of the Snickerdoodle:

Me (pretending to hear the phone): "Ring, Ring!! Hello? Oh, hi Nana! Do you want to speak to Anna Kathryn? Ok, here she is!"

Anna Kathryn: "Ya ya ya ya! Mama mama mama! Buh-bye!!"

Repeat for at least 2 minutes, until the 14-month-old attention span turns elsewhere. Anna Kathryn loves to chat on her cell phone!

Winter Blast 2009

2009-01-20T21:05:00.004-05:00

Today we had our first snow day in a long time!! Yesterday we got all excited about the possibility of snow when we heard the forecast. Mark and I did our snow dance (think Elaine from Seinfeld crossed with the "Lawnmower") and Anna Kathryn looked at us like we were crazy. I even wore my ancient and beloved wool snowflake sweater yesterday, which is my snow day good-luck charm. Mark woke up at 3:30 and saw a few flakes but nothing much... but when the alarm went off at 5:45 there was lots of snow and school had been canceled!!

We got Anna Kathryn up, and showed her the snow falling outside. She stared at the flakes for a while, intrigued. After we had a family cuddle in our warm, cozy bed, we ate breakfast and then began getting dressed in lots of layers to brave the cold. Anna Kathryn was a little bit sweaty by the time she was all bundled up.

She and Mark went sledding (no judging the cardboard "sled"!)...

Anna Kathryn and I made a snow angel:

And then we let her try to make a snow angel herself:

We also tried to build a snowman, but the snow was so powdery that it just fell apart.

And she was curious about the snow....

...but really didn't want to actually touch the snow all that much. Seems she and I are quite similar in our feeling about snow. We love to watch it come down and enjoy being in it for about 10 minutes, then it's time to head indoors and break out the hot chocolate!!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-01-14T20:52:00.000-05:00

What I Did on My Christmas Vacation

2009-01-11T20:57:00.007-05:00

Well, it wasn't blogging, was it?? :-) We spent Christmas and New Year's in FL with my family. All 4 generations were together at some point during Christmas and Christmas Week: my grandparents, my parents, aunt and uncle, my sister and her family and us. My folks have a big house and we filled it up. Truly the best part of it all was after the hustle of traveling and Christmas Eve/Day had passed and the family all just hung out together and played with the 3 girls. Having our daughter at home with us at long last was really the best present I could ask for, and Christmas was even more meaningful as I held my daughter throughout the candlelight service. (Not that I had a lot of time to reflect, what with trying to keep her from crawling up to the pulpit to see Pop-pop as he preached or from chewing on the candles.)

Since then, we stopped on our way back to NC for a nice overnight visit with another family we traveled with to China. Their daughter is so adorable and it was great to see how well she has handled the many adjustments she's faced in the past few months. We really enjoyed the time to chat and catch up with L. and S. -- we appreciated their hospitality and are looking forward to hopefully making a stop at their house a tradition when we go see my folks!

Anna Kathryn definitely enjoyed her first Christmas with us. I have no idea how, or if, Christmas was even celebrated at the Poyang SWI, but in any case, she was less than 2 months old last Christmas and wouldn't have had a clue. She liked Alie's gift from Santa more than her own, but we figured she would need to grow into it. She did chew on the baby Jesus several times and was intrigued by the angel, which lit up when you pressed down on it, and the song "Away in a Manger" played. AK does love the musical toys! Emily had great fun later on making up lots of stories about the Bible characters.

She cooed and squirmed through Christmas Eve service and got to meet a sweet girl in my dad's church who is also Chinese. She was interested in our birthday party for Jesus for the first few minutes and actually listened to my dad read the Nativity story from the Bible, then proceeded to empty our stockings systematically. Hee hee.

Anna Kathryn took a little while to get used to everybody (velcro baby at first), but eventually was toddling between people and blowing kisses and getting hugs. She absolutely loved playing with her cousins: Emily was so patient with her and willingly shared lots of her new toys. Alie, at 4 months, didn't do much but look at AK. She did cringe a bit every time AK came too close, since a lack of fine motor skills and an abundance of curiosity meant that Alie got bopped in the head a number of times by AK. AK's favorite word is "mama" and she kept looking at my sister (we do resemble each other, and sound a lot alike) and saying, "Mama?" with this quizzical look on her face. Too cute! She played a lot of peek-a-boo with Nana and is now a fan of riding on Nana's scooter with her. She loved romping with Pop-pop, and totally charmed my grandparents and aunt and uncle.

Big news: she took her first steps on December 29th, to much applause and cheering from the entire family!

She rolled with the changes in routine and household pretty well, especially considering we had just completely changed her routine when she started daycare. The last few days of the trip she was somewhat cranky more often, but mostly was her usual good-natured self. She just didn't sleep as well away from her crib. We tried to keep her routine as semi-normal as possible, but it really wasn't possible. But, I think she loved being with mama and daddy and the family all day -- I know I loved it!! Eventually, she did run out of steam.

So, pictures. I have LOTS, thanks to my sister giving me copies of her files to add to my own. That was part of my mental block about even getting around to posting about Christmas. I'm definitely going to have to post in installments.

Added at 10:30: Today is Mark's birthday! Unfortunately, the Panthers lost last night and he has a bad cold, so the celebration was rather subdued. I feel so blessed to celebrate another year with him! Happy Birthday, honey!

Dedication Day

2008-12-15T20:55:00.009-05:00

Yesterday, we dedicated Anna Kathryn to the Lord formally in front of our church family and friends. This was the outward ceremony to confirm in public what we did in our hearts many years ago, when Mark and I first started praying for a child. Our close friends Allison, David, and Maggie came with us and I am so glad they were able to share in this special day.

Of course, there was a bit of stress involved with the whole thing, as is typical with anything in my life that is ceremonial and/or overly planned. I got up extra early to make sure we had lunch cooking before we left and that we were all clean, pressed and dressed up. Unfortunately, Anna Kathryn decided to fill her diaper right about the time we needed to be getting her dressed. (I had waited until the last minute so she wouldn't get anything on her pretty silk outfit. Instead of the traditional white, embroidered christening gown I decided to dress Anna Kathryn in one of the silk outfits we bought for her in China. She wore a two piece pants outfit of bright pink and gold, with her pink, appliqued tiger slippers to match.) Since these things can't be rushed, we had to hang around a bit. We finally were able to dress her, shove her coat on and get out the door. We stopped by Allison's house to pick them up and we were on our way.

We managed to arrive 10 minutes early. That gave Anna Kathryn time to wave at lots of people before the service started. Church began and she did well through all of the singing. We sang lots of carols, which is all I want to sing at Christmas. We hadn't been able to check with the pastor before the service began to see when our part would happen but I figured it would be early on, for the sake of the squirmy baby.

After the praise and worship time, we moved into prayer. This was about 40 minutes into the service. Anna Kathryn had "helped" Maggie eat a pack of dried fruit and by now was ready to get on with things. I was, too. Plus her precious, traditional-for-Chinese-babies tiger slippers were too big and kept falling off, which was driving me crazy. She had already hung out in everyone's lap, and began to get noisy while folks were praying, so I took her into the narthex.

While we were out there, our pastor, a great guy, came rushing in. He hurriedly explained that all through the first part of the service he kept thinking that there was something he'd forgotten. Then he remembered... the baby dedication! He apologized and said we'd do it after the offertory. Hee hee! I was glad to go back into church after prayer time and tell Mark that we were next.

The other funny part to this was the candle... our church gives the family a candle that is lit during the dedication. Pink for girls, blue for boys. The pastor explains that the candle is a keepsake to be lit on the child's birthday every year. When they are old enough to ask about the candle, the parents tell them about how they were dedicated to God as an infant and it's another opportunity to tell our children about how much Jesus loves them. Well, the pastor didn't have an extra candle available so he had to wing it. Thank goodness Anna Kathryn is a girl, because he plucked the pink candle out of the Advent wreath, and now she has an extra special candle!

A few more pictures from the day (taken at a discreet distance, so a little dark):

Allison and David took some HILARIOUS snapshots later on, after lunch, of the girls in front of our tree. The combination of a three-year old and a one-year-old makes for entertaining photos, if nothing else! She posted them on her blog. I'm still cracking up over these.

Remembering...

2008-12-14T19:39:00.005-05:00

Tonight at 7:00 pm, along with my sister and many others around the world who have lost a beloved child, I lit a candle in memory of my sweet niece, Natalie. Her Uncle Mark and I miss her so very much, though we know she is rejoicing in heaven.

Though He brings grief, He will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love.

Lamentations 3:32

Anna Kathryn's First Art Project

2008-12-13T22:41:00.003-05:00

On Friday, Anna Kathryn brought home her first art project from daycare. Her tiny little hands are the antlers. (!!) After I finished wiping away a little tear, I had to chuckle a little at the, um, creative placement of Rudolph's eyes. I'm so proud!

Juggling...

2008-12-10T21:48:00.004-05:00

... work, baby, husband, house, life in general these days. It's all basically good but by the end of the evening, I'm toast. I now understand why all of my new mommy friends go to bed early. Too bad I am addicted to reading blogs and tend to be a night owl!

Anyway. We are all transitioning into the new routine well, and Anna Kathryn has pretty much settled into her new routine and going to day care (we call it "school"). She likes her new teachers and seems particularly fond of one of the afternoon teachers. She is super tired most nights -- dinner often ends with howls and spitting out rejected bites-- so bedtime is earlier these days. We try to make the most of the few short hours we have with her before bed. My one big wish these days is that dishes would magically load themselves in the dishwasher and that the sponge would magically wipe the counter. I don't mind cooking dinner at all, but after the bedtime routine I want to plop down on the couch and put my feet up, not do the dishes. I usually can't get it all done before bedtime, because that would cut into playtime with Little Miss Sunshine. Mark lends a hand many nights and I love it (and him, especially) when he does. I know I am blessed to be married to such a great guy.

Anna Kathryn's First Birthday!!

2008-12-03T21:48:00.003-05:00

Anna Kathryn turned one on November 3, but I have finally gone through all of the pictures from her birthday party and picked my favorites. We had a wonderful day celebrating our special girl, surrounded by family and a few close friends (who are practically family anyway!).

P.S.-- I'm back to posting on this blog at last!! I also have a new-ish name and got a facelift. I may be slightly addicted to redecorating my blogs-- it's more fun than writing posts, honestly.

Where am I?

2008-11-17T21:13:00.005-05:00

Yes, I am still posting over at my other blog. I had planned to cut the cord long before this, but somehow I keep posting over there... plus I am perpetually behind on things to post and keep telling myself that I'll switch back to this blog after a certain point. There are still a couple of "milestones" I want to post about on the "Journey" blog, and several bouts of flu and such at our house over the past month have worn me out and squelched my blogging energy, Sooooo... please keep checking over there and one day very soon I'll be back here!

Missing Natalie

2008-10-30T23:16:00.005-04:00

Natalie at five months

Natalie's first birthday, August 2007

One year ago, my sweet, beautiful baby niece Natalie died after an accident. She was a fighter, and so brave, but ultimately her injury was too severe and the Lord took her home. The past week I have marked the days thinking of what happened each day between the accident and the morning she died. This has been a week of sad anniversaries for our whole family, but my sister, brother-in-law, and older niece have felt their hearts breaking all over again. She was just 14 months old.

I had seen her on just 6 different occasions in her brief life. We were lucky enough to see her (and the rest of the family, of course) just about a month before the accident. I treasure those times. How I wish we'd had more! A few days ago, my sister sent some photos of the girls, and many were of Natalie. Some I don't remember seeing before. I cried as I went through each picture, remembering and wishing I could hug her just one more time. Wishing I'd heard her call me "Aunt Kimmie", or giggle at Mark's funny faces again, or play the "Crab Game" with Emily. Wishing we'd had more birthdays, and Christmas together, and that she'd been able to meet her cousin Anna Kathryn on this side of heaven.

Tonight, I can't find the words to write about all that is on my mind and in my heart. Sometimes there are just no words. Hillary, my sister and Nat's mother, wrote a beautiful post tonight about her daughter. But I wanted and needed to write just a little in honor of this special girl, now our angel, safe in the arms of our Heavenly Father forever.

Surfacing

2008-10-17T22:31:00.003-04:00

Hello... hello... anyone out there??

((crickets chirping))

I'm jumping back into the bloggy world after a three-week break. I posted over at Journey to Anna Kathryn tonight, but I'll be returning to this blog in the next week or two. See you over there!

Showered with Love

2008-09-07T22:53:00.012-04:00

Mark and I have been "showered with love" by so many friends and family over the past 2 months as we prepared to bring Anna Kathryn home. My parents, grandparents, sister, and aunts and uncles have expressed love in so many ways and have helped us with all kinds of things we needed to travel!

Mark's mom went shopping for Anna Kathryn before we came to Ohio for our visit and gave us a little shower of her own. I was so surprised and delighted!

About a month ago, my college friends and I gathered to host a baby shower for Emily, who is due very soon! Leslie, Reagan, and Allison helped paint the nursery pink -- a major transformation from the turquoise blue (my stepdaughter's color scheme when the room was hers).

Mark posted some Scriptures and wishes for Anna Kathryn before painting-- writing it on the walls so she will always be surrounded by blessings.

The painting crew: hard at work...

The nursery is still a work in progress, but here is the best shot so far (Reagan, this is for you!)

We still have pictures to hang, and there is a bit more furniture in it now (dresser and changing table). I am trying to get much of this done before we leave, since we will be preoccupied with Baby when we get home.

The staff at my school gave me a lovely, spur-of the moment baby shower last Thursday. The staff went in together and bought the car seat that I hoped for. It's so very cute and very, very safe! They also brought donations of baby clothing that we will give to the Poyang SWI, to help with the clothing shortage and as a way to give back to the place and people who have cared for Anna Kathryn for the first 10 months of her life. It was a wonderful afternoon and I felt so loved and encouraged!

Visiting with friends at the shower:

As usual at times of high emotion, I cried when they led me over to the gifts and I saw all of the clothes, the diaper cake, and the adorable car seat.

Jamie and Ashley made the diaper cake-- almost too cute to use!!
Some other friends are hosting "Meet Anna Kathryn" showers after we return from China. I just can't wait! It will be so much fun to introduce her to the people who have been anxiously awaiting her arrival along with us.

New travel blog!

2008-09-06T12:42:00.004-04:00

Here is the link for the new blog that I've set up that is dedicated to journaling our trip to China. I'll be posting on this one exclusively when we are in China. I invite you all to follow our journey to bring Anna Kathryn home!

Journey to Anna Kathryn

http://journeytoannakathryn.blogspot.com

Someday

2008-09-03T21:31:00.007-04:00

This morning I listened to the Bob and Sheri AM radio show on my way to work, as I do every day. Since I usually leave for work around 7:35 (or 7:43, as was the case today), I pretty much always hear the topic for the "chatroom" segment, where people call in and talk about the topic of the day.

Today the topic was "someday"-- what are the things you were told would happen someday? Or what is something you told yourself would happen someday? Maybe it did, maybe it didn't.

I really wished I could stop the car and take the time to call in to tell my story, because my someday is finally around the corner. Mark and I have been longing for children and (one way or another) trying to have children for about 4 1/2 years now. It has been the greatest struggle, test, and grief of my life.

Infertility has challenged everything I thought I knew about the world around me, my faith, my marriage, my relationships, and my personality. There have been many tears and frankly, much anguish as we worked through the loss of some dreams and finally embraced new dreams. I have struggled with doubt, anxiety, worry, and fear on a nearly daily basis.

I also learned that I have the strength to endure when I just thought I might not be able to get up and face each day. My marriage has been strengthened by the toughest times, and Mark and I have grown closer than ever through this experience. My faith has been tested, yet it has also been refined by the fire of grief. I am a person who wants control over every area of my life, but I have learned to lean on the Lord's provision and strength instead.

For years, I have longed for someday rather than today.

Someday, we'd get to call our families with the news that we were expecting a baby.
Someday, I'd get to watch Mark play hide and seek and tag and make goofy faces with our babies.
Someday, I'd get to shop in the baby section of Target without feeling like I was trespassing and all the real moms would know I didn't really belong there.
Someday I'd get to attend a baby shower for my baby.
Someday it wouldn't hurt so much when another friend or family member announced their pregnancy-- I could be happy for them without feeling so very sad for myself at the same time.
Someday, my arms would no longer be empty.
Someday, I'd get to tuck my baby into bed after reading a bedtime story and hearing prayers.
Someday, we'd get to experience a joyful Christmas with our little one.
Someday, we'd get to see the 5 "big kids" play with their little sister or brother.

Someday, we'd get the Call from our agency that we had been matched with our baby!
Someday, we'd be packing a suitcase and planning the trip of a lifetime.
Someday, we'd board a plane to take us 7,000 miles from home.
Someday, we'd arrive in a government office in China and a baby would be placed in our arms.
Someday, I would be a mom at last.

My someday is finally just days away. I actually know the date of my most special someday ever.

Honestly, I can hardly believe it.

I think it's gonna sink in at 9:58 next Thursday morning as we get on that plane to take us to Anna Kathryn.

We're going to China!!

2008-08-29T16:17:00.004-04:00

We leave September 11 and return home on September 27 with Anna Kathryn! Gotcha Day will probably be on September 15 or 16.

After the frustration of this week Mark and I are so excited... and relieved... and excited! Yesterday we heard that more consulate appointments had opened up and that AWAA was trying hard to get their families into those slots. I tried not to get my hopes up too much, but of course I did anyway. We didn't hear anything further the rest of the day, and we went to bed wondering (hoping) we'd hear something today, before the long Labor Day weekend.

I even checked my e-mail at 10:15 last night, hoping to hear something... if only I'd been a few minutes later!

This morning when I got to work and opened up my e-mail it was waiting in my inbox: an e-mail titled "Concrete Travel Dates." I gasped so loudly my media assistant came running in to see what was the matter.

So the day has been a blur of grade level meetings (I scheduled myself to do a media center orientation for the faculty in all three grade levels), e-mails and frantic phone calls about flights, and confirmation of plane tickets.

We have one minor issue to deal with, still. I also got an e-mail stating that the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou does not have any record that we were re-fingerprinted last December (which we had to do to renew our paperwork for USCIS, which allows us to bring AK into the country as a US citizen.) We got our updated form in late April, after we finally made it through the homestudy update. I panicked for a minute, then settled to down to figure out what to do. I tried calling 4 times, but never did manage to talk to a human. I ended up leaving work early, going home, scanning our official document, and emailing it along with a rather pleading message to the Charlotte USCIS office. Hope they get it and send along the information ASAP. Please pray that we get this particular bump smoothed out quickly.

So, this weekend, we are cleaning closets (and my grungy house), making lists of stuff to pack, and gathering what we need. I can hardly believe we have plane tickets to China! In 2 weeks, we'll be there, and a few days later, our daughter will be in our arms. As Allison would say-- wowzers.

So close, yet so far away

2008-08-27T21:38:00.005-04:00

According to our agency, September travel is pretty much out of the question due to the fact that, after years of waiting for approvals from China, the US Consulate is now the holdup. They are (allegedly) booked through the month, and although a few other families have gotten September appointments as late as today, we were not that lucky. We have been told, possibly early October. Or not. Who knows?

I can finally quit being utterly frustrated with C*hina's government being so slow and return to being completely fed up with my own. Without this appointment, and the papers we will get at it, we cannot legally bring our daughter home. So no travel plans can be made until we get the CA. Until the last month or two, families usually got their CA within a day or two of getting their travel approval. Tomorrow will be six days for us. **sigh**

I wish we might have heard something today, but our agency was closed for a planned staff development day. I'm having a hard time not being totally frustrated with them, too. I feel like they needed to spend today on the phone requesting/begging/bribing the consulate folks to give us an appointment as soon as is humanly possible so I can go get my daughter out of an orphanage already and BRING HER HOME.

Plus, I need to be able to get something done at work except hit the refresh button on my e-mail and Rumor Queen.

I know I am blessed to even be able to complain about this. I could still be waiting in the long line. And I believe wholeheartedly that this delay is a part of God's plans for us... but as usual, I am ready for "someday" to become "tomorrow." I can't stand the thought of Anna Kathryn growing up without us being with her.

Speaking of tomorrow, my sister is scheduled to give birth to daughter #3 in the early hours of the morning... please be in prayer that all would go well for mama and baby Allison Hope during the delivery and after. Hospitals are still difficult for Hillary, and I'm sure there will be many memories of Natalie and lots of emotions that will go along with Alie's arrival. We cannot wait to meet Alie, our new little joy!

Moving at the Speed of Life

2008-08-24T21:58:00.005-04:00

Why haven't I been blogging much, despite all of the major happenings in the Kovach household over the past few weeks? Well, we've been really busy! Here is a small sampling of what Mark and I have done and have been up to:

Celebrated Mark's son Abe's wedding at the SC beach (this was our vacation, too) and welcomed new daughter-in-law, Karen, into the family
Celebrated Mark's son Caleb's wedding in the NC mountains (yesterday, in fact!) and welcomed new daughter-in-law, Leslie, into the family
Traveled to Florida to visit my parents and grandparents
Traveled to Ohio to visit Mark's parents and brother's family (and bring home a crib for Anna Kathryn)
Many phone calls with Hillary about Alie's impending arrival
Registered for baby stuff
Shopped for and selected a day care
Gathered our visa paperwork, and mailed numerous documents to our agency!
Painted the nursery, ordered and set up crib bedding, clean out closets (sadly-- not done with that part yet!). Mark put the crib together early one morning while I slept in a little-- I'd better enjoy that while it lasts! We are recycling some of my childhood furniture and a few "pre-owned" and loved items into nursery furniture.
Packed up Mark's classroom at his former school and moved him into his new room at another middle school
Spent an afternoon at my school-- I needed Mark's help with assembling media carts and hanging new signage in the media center
Spent a LOT of time on the phone and on e-mail discussing the good news!! Also much time has been spent online gathering travel and packing information, and reading more about attachment and bonding. A little too much time, as always, has been spent on Rumor Queen's site.
Survived a week of teacher workdays (meeting after meeting, mixed with some visiting, and not enough shelving) and prepped for the first day of school-- August 25!

I bet I've forgotten something... but you get the idea! The time moves so fast, and yet so slowly as we wait.

Friday afternoon at 4:30, as we were driving up for Caleb's wedding rehearsal and dinner, the phone rang just as we got into Boone (and better cell service). It was the travel coordinator at our agency telling us that we just received our Invitation to Travel from the Chinese government! Well, we were floored-- I was driving and had to pull over so I could listen and take notes without wrecking the car. Mark had been snoozing and at first didn't know why I was pulling over. Much excitement ensued as we headed on to the rehearsal, despite getting totally lost on Beech Mountain.

We have two possible windows for travel; AWAA is trying to make sure we travel with a group. We could travel September 11-24 (or 25, depending on travel arrangements), provided we can get a consulate appointment (CA) in late September. The CA is crucial because that gives us Anna Kathryn's travel visa and citizenship papers. If we can't get a CA in Sept., we will have to wait until mid-October or later to travel. We are praying hard that we can get a CA for September travel. (September is very busy, sandwiched between the Olympics this month and the National Holidays and Trade Fair in October. I've heard that appointments are becoming scarce.) Obviously, we would rather travel sooner than later!! Still, we know God has this all planned out-- if it's in his plan for us to be united with AK sooner rather than later, it will happen.

It's been six weeks exactly since we first saw Anna Kathryn's sweet face. They have been some of the busiest weeks of my life! Sometimes I wish things would slow down just a little, so I could catch my breath and really reflect on all the changes in our family right now.

Anna Kathryn at 9.5 months

2008-08-20T21:44:00.007-04:00

Today we got a long-awaited update on Anna Kathryn BoDi from Ladybugs and Love. They were able to call the Poyang SWI and get updated measurements, answers to 10 questions, and -- best of all-- new pictures!!

Anna Kathryn can sit up, crawl, and stand up by holding on to something (as seen above). She likes to eat formula, congee, fruit, and crackers. (We actually asked what her favorite food was. I'm not sure if these are truly her faves or if it's just what she eats). She is still a good sleeper; she only wakes up if there are loud noises, and takes a daily nap around 1:00. She prefers to lay on her back. Mark is very very excited that her favorite activities are outdoors. She has many friends, but no special friend. Her favorite toys are colorful and make sounds. Most surprising, she has 2 teeth already!

She weighs 15.4 pounds and is 27.75 inches long. (She actually weighs less than our cat, Ellie!) I'm excited that she will probably fit into all of her cute 9-month size clothes!! She looks well nourished and very happy in the pictures. Angela, the contact person who placed the call to the orphanage, said that they told her she is doing really well. We are so thankful to hear this, and to see her looking so happy and healthy. Everything I have read and heard about the Poyang SWI is that the nannies are excellent and the level of care is very good. The babies are well nourished and loved.

I just love how they captured two different expressions in the pictures. Anna Kathryn is so cute, sticking out her tongue and smiling in the top photo, and I just am captivated by the one of her looking up, standing by her walker in that sweet pink dress. I was also excited to see her in the wicker walker-- I have seen photos of other Poyang babies in those walkers, and have wondered if she was ever put in them.

It's wonderful and yet so hard to see these pictures... to see how much she has changed in 5 months... to wonder how much more growing up she will do before we travel and are united with her. I WISH we were leaving now. I really, really wish that we get our travel approval soon and can start booking flights and packing suitcases. I look at her sweet face and just long to hold her.

RA today!!

2008-07-31T23:22:00.005-04:00

Mark and I got a call from Anna, our Family Coordinator at AWAA, this afternoon as we rolled down I-95, on our way to Florida for a super-quick trip to see my parents and grandparents.

We have our referral approval (otherwise known as the Letter of Approval) from the CCAA to adopt Anna Kathryn!!!!

This is the long-awaited, officially official paperwork that says it's all systems go from here on out. The countdown begins for our Travel Approval now. This could arrive as early as 4 weeks from now, or as long as a couple of months (but I truly do not think it will take that long. No, it's not just my expectant-mama optimism, but the pattern for some other families who were reviewed when they were matched.) We have about 147,000 things to do before we leave, but if someone said that we could get on a plane to China tomorrow, you bet I'd be on it.

So, since we are officially official, it is my absolute joy to share Anna Kathryn's beautiful face with the world:

Home again, home again, jiggidy jig

2008-07-26T22:02:00.000-04:00

We just got home tonight from our trip to the beach and celebrating Abe and Karen's wedding in Murrells Inlet, SC. Mark and I are worn out, but in a good way. It was a wonderful week with the kids. We got to spend several days out at the beach (random burn struck me again), did a little shopping, hung out with all of the kids and their friends/fiancees/boyfriends and did a lot of food prep/errand running to get ready for the wedding. I'll have to devote a future post to the wedding-- it was beautiful and a lot of fun.

We got 2 pieces of good news while we were vacationing! The first was that we got our PA, or pre-approval, from the CCAA on Tuesday. This is the first of 3 approvals that we must get from China before we can travel to get Anna Kathryn!

The PA basically states that the CCAA has received our letter of intent that we sent electronically the day after we got AK's referral. After they review our dossier paperwork, they will issue a Referral Approval (RA) -- which is also, confusingly, called a Letter of Approval (LOA in adoption jargon). It's a good thing that as an educator, I am used to dealing with an alphabet soup of acronyms on a daily basis. The RA is the final, official approval that states that the CCAA has agreed to let us adopt AK. Now, there really is no chance that they would say no-- it's just the red tape that is part and parcel of international adoption. Plus, our dossier has already been through the review process, so we have cleared that hurdle. We are hopeful that our RA will come quickly because our dossier is out of review already.

Due to the Olympics and the likely shutdown of most government offices during that time, I don't expect to see our TA until well after it's over. My gut feeling is that we will travel in early October, but that is a total guess at this point. Once we get TA, we apply for our visas and start making travel arrangements! Woo-hoo!!

The 2nd piece of good news is that Mark has a new teaching position. He will be teaching 8th grade math at one of the top middle schools in the county. He is excited and thrilled, and I am totally jealous that he could potentially carpool with Allison, since they will be at the same school. God is good! He worked this situation out for Mark's good, and we are so relieved that he is not only out of job-related limbo, but has landed at a great school not too far from home and the day care where we hope AK will be able to go.

So, the summer continues to blaze past at the speed of light. I may be a little scarce again this next week. I need to finish the last of my work for my summer grad school classes (thank goodness all of my profs gave extentions on the final projects) and we leave later in the week to visit my family in Florida. I hope to post about the wedding soon!

Also-- you've probably noticed my new look! It was time for a makeover. I found an awesome website with the cutest FREE blog designs that are super-easy to use. Thanks, Leelou!! Go here if you want to know more or spruce up your blog. Tell me what you think about the new look!

Every silver lining has a cloud, or

2008-07-17T14:35:00.000-04:00

"Incompetence is the pinnacle of annoyance."

No, I'm not talking about anything adoption or Anna Kathryn related! However, this has easily been one of the craziest weeks ever for Mark and myself.

Monday morning was, well, busy. We were frantically calling the pediatrician and getting our acceptance paperwork together, not to mention quivering with excitement over AK and a major lack of sleep. Then, Mark got a call from our school district's HR department. He'd recently been hired to teach 4th grade at an elementary school, a big change after 8 years of surly eighth graders, but one he was really excited about. Two weeks ago his new principal called him and said that everything was set, his transfer was complete, and welcome to the team. Monday, he was informed by HR that due to a MAJOR oversight, they had just noticed that he is not, in fact, "highly qualified" to teach elementary school. Therefore, he cannot be put into the position.

Huh??

Mark has been teaching for 24 years. The majority of his experience has been at the elementary level. His bachelor's degree is in elementary education. He holds a valid NC teaching credential in-- you guessed it-- elementary ed. And he is 1 class away from completing a master's degree in Educational Leadership (school administration).

Hard to believe the man is not "highly qualified", but according to the federal guidelines established by No C.hild L.eft B.ehind, unless he takes and passes two exams, he is not "highly qualified." None of the rest of his credentials matter-- just that. He did all the "HQ" stuff several years ago for middle school math, but was told then that his elementary status was fine the way it was. Guess which presidential administration has just been put on my poopy list?? And which HR dept. ??! Grrr.

And unfortunately, the only time this exam will be given between now and the first day of school is at 8:00 a.m. the Saturday morning after Abram, Mark's son, gets married to his sweet fiancee, Karen. The wedding is at 6:30 p.m. Friday. At the beach. Not gonna happen, my friends.

Plus the test will cost many hundreds of dollars, which frankly, we do not have, what with all of the grad school classes, car repairs, weddings, and adoptions that we are funding right now.

And the final kicker was that Mark's replacement has already been hired, and he cannot go back into his old teaching position. They don't have any openings, either. He would gladly return to his old school, but their hands are tied. He has tenure, so he'll have a position somewhere in the county, but we have no idea where right now.

Needless to say, this has been a bit of a challenge we've faced this week in the midst of our great jubilation over seeing Anna Kathryn for the first time and swinging into preparations. We've been pretty calm-- all things considered-- because honestly, how could we get overly upset about anything when we have the sweetest baby ever coming home soon?

Still, it would be nice for Mark to have a job-- preferably one he likes. He has some leads on middle school positions, and we are praying that something awesome will come his way. Thankfully, he finished summer school today, so he gets some R & R time. At least he doesn't have to write 3 weeks' worth of elementary lesson plans while we are in China!

I know God is teaching us to continue to be completely dependent on Him in all circumstances. This is a lesson I have learned the hard way through the years of waiting to have children, through all the failed attempts, through the slowdown in China and all the discouraging news about the state of IA in general. This is not my strong suit. I prefer to be in control. But the Lord has a way of reminding me who's really in charge of my life. I'm slowly learning that it's better to go with His plan, since it's gonna be way, way better than anything I could come up with on my own.

I got confirmation of that last Sunday, the first time I saw Anna Kathryn's beautiful face.

By the way, I really would love to post her picture, but we are waiting on a couple of approvals from the CCAA before doing so. Soon, I hope, I'll be able to show her off to the world. My next post I'll do my best to explain the next round of red tape we will wade through before traveling.

Also-- for my family, or anyone who has always thought it would be a ton of fun to hang out at the beach for a week every summer with your best girlfriends, read this. I meant to blog about it myself, but Allison took pictures and well, she has a way with words.

The Best Phone Call EVER

2008-07-14T17:51:00.000-04:00

I've started this post three times, and it all sounded lame, so I'm just going to announce it:

WE GOT THE CALL!!!!

As in, the call that we have been dreaming of for over two years. The moment I've been longing for for even longer.

The call from our agency, in which one of the family coordinators said the magic words: "We have a baby for you."

(Actually, I have no idea what she actually said. We were both in shock. Shaking, trying not to cry, frantically searching for a piece of paper on which to take notes. If she had asked me for my name at that moment, I do not think I could have recalled it.)

So:

We are the soon-to-be parents of a beautiful, 8-month old baby girl. Her Chinese name is Bo Di. She is currently living at the Social Welfare Institute of Poyang County, in Jiangxi Province, located in the southeastern part of China. According to her medical report, she is a happy baby with a sweet smile, a deep sleeper (I pray it is still true, since the paperwork is 4 months old), is active and restless (like Mark) and likes to play. She apparently gets really excited and smiles and waves her hands happily when she sees food at mealtime (a girl after my own heart.)

Mark and I stared at each other, stunned, when we hung up with the agency. (I didn't know that they even worked on Sundays!) Then we opened up the e-mail with information and pictures, but we already knew. Mark said, "That's our Anna Kathryn." We devoured every scrap of information, and called AWAA back to say, yes, of course, we want to accept her referral.

Then we got to make the other best phone calls ever-- telling our families. And sending joyous e-mails to more family and friends. In between calls, we kept saying things to each other like, "Is this real?" "Isn't she beautiful?" "Did this really happen?"

We just spent a frantic 24 hours gathering paperwork and writing a "Letter of Intent" (LOI) to the CCAA stating that yes, we really, really, really truly want to adopt her-- and some other stuff. We have a 48 hour window in which to do this, or we could have lost AK's referral. Needless to say, neither one of us slept a whole lot last night. But today we visited a pediatrician to have her medical report reviewed, and he said the info indicates that she is quite healthy and developmentally on target. We e-mailed our LOI, some other papers, and more photos to AWAA. Around 5:00 p.m. today, we got the e-mail saying that our Electronic Acceptance was sent to China and she will be ours!

I know y'all want to see pictures, but we have to wait a few weeks before we post them. I promise they will go up as soon as we get the OK from AWAA.

We don't know exactly when we will travel, other than it will be sometime in the next 2-5 months. We feel pretty safe in thinking we will be home with AK before Christmas. I'm personally hoping we will be with her before her first birthday-- November 3!

In an amazing "God-thing," Anna Kathryn was born on a significant date in our family's lives. November 3, 2007 was also the day we held my niece Natalie's funeral. It was by far the most horrible day of our lives. I always wondered if I would know what I was doing on the day of my daughter's birth. I never would have dreamed that a day of such tremendous sorrow would also be the day of a new beginning in the life of my family. This is not a coincidence. I believe with my whole heart that the Lord and Nat-Nat were watching over Anna Kathryn on that day.

Mark and I are SO EXCITED. We are totally in love with Anna Kathryn. Last night, we were looking back through a little book about adoption that Mark got for me around the time we sent in our dossier. We saw this quote, and know that this is what we will tell Anna Kathryn one day soon, when we first hold her in our arms.

You are now a part of this family, my darling, wonderful child. You are and always will be the choice of my heart. Welcome home.

I should be writing a paper, but...

2008-06-23T14:32:00.000-04:00

... this Web site has been far more entertaining. These notes are hilarious! I can think of a couple I'd like to send to the professor who requires the 10-page papers on exciting topics like budgets and strategic career plans.

We Are Through Review!!

2008-06-20T22:13:00.000-04:00

We are finally out of review!! In the world of international adoption from China, that means that nearly 18 months (as of July 5) after being logged in, our dossier has been reviewed by the CCAA and we made it through the process without being questioned or needing to provide additional documents. If you want to know more about the review process, click here.

This is a big milestone. In the good old days, it would mean that a referral is only a few months away, but with the current state of affairs, this is not necessarily the case. (sigh.) The good news is that there is very little chance at this point the CCAA will tell our agency that we are not eligible to adopt for some reason. And if we do receive and accept a referral for a Waiting Child, the process and time to travel is supposed to go more quickly since we are already through review. I've been holding my breath a little knowing that we are supposed to be reviewed under the old regulations that were in place when we mailed off our dossier in December of 2006, and that we won't qualify under the new regs established in May 2007. I was a little afraid that somehow we would not pass muster.

It's a bit of an anti-climatic milestone, since we don't get a big old certificate or anything special to indicate we passed review, except an e-mail from our agency saying that January 2007 dossiers are done. It is very nice to see the news on the box that Rumor Queen keeps posted on her Web site now that it's no longer on the CCAA Web site. It's still a major step in the process, and has given me a bit of renewed hope that someday we really will be on a plane to China to bring home our daughter.

Matching room, here we come!!

Porch Time

2008-06-19T11:20:00.000-04:00

I'm feeling rather rusty at posting, since it's been almost a month. I think that blogging is more like going back to the gym to work out than riding a bike. It's easy to remember how to do it, just hard to get started after a long time away. I generally prefer to sit on the couch.

Where was I? For the internets who haven't talked to me recently, things were insanely busy at work for the final month of school. I had no idea how much work goes into finishing the year in a school library media center. I also started my two summer classes, and one of my professors has required 6 + page papers for every assignment. With at least 10 references. Ugh.

Something had to give. Blogging, unfortunately, was first. Next was laundry, house cleaning, and cooking. (oh well!)

It wasn't all work and no play, though.

I spent the first weekend in June in Spartanburg with Allison, Leslie, and Reagan. We shopped, saw "Sex and the City," and of course talked and talked and talked. It was a fun little taste of what is to come later this month during Girls Beach Week at the Little Acorn.

My parents arrived for a visit on June 6, which was also the last day of school. Unfortunately, their arrival coincided with a massive heat wave, so we adjusted our plans to involve all air-conditioned activities (no Pops in the Park, sadly). We shopped, gorged on delicious Italian food at Maggiano's up at SouthPark, and went to see "Kung Fu Panda" (hilarious, by the way. Mark did NOT want to see it, but he was snorting with laughter within the first half-hour.) Mom and I got pedicures, and Dad even came out to school and helped me straighten the shelves on my final workday. Thanks, Dad!

Then, my sister Hillary and niece Emily arrived. They enjoyed hanging out here with us for a couple of days (and Emily enjoyed a playdate with Maggie) before heading off to the North Georgia cabin for a week's vacation with Mom & Dad. Mark and I followed on Friday morning, after we finished some schoolwork.

The cabin was the best. thing. ever. after the craziness and stress I have been under for the past month. It's always a peaceful retreat from the world, since it is literally in the middle of the woods. (No TV. No cell service to speak of. No internet!) My favorite favorite thing to do is hang out on the porch and read or chat, or just look at the mountains around us and the creek below. It is a little piece of heaven.

Sunset, mountain style

We did lots of fun things in the mountains: a scenic train ride along the Toccoa River, yummy meals at the Smith House and Rib Country, and a trip to Babyland General Hospital, home of the Cabbage Patch Kid dolls. The best parts were out at the cabin with my family: chasing and catching fireflies with Emily and Mark, visiting on the porch with my folks, Hillary, and my Aunt Celia and Uncle Dick, making s'mores and watching a full moon rise over the mountain ridges.

We want s'more!

Dad, Mom (aka Nana & Pop-Pop), Emily, & Hillary on the Blue Ridge Scenic Train

Me and Emily hanging out at the creek.

An Ordinary Wednesday

2008-05-22T21:51:00.000-04:00

I read about the death of Steven and Mary Beth Chapman's daughter Maria today with a heavy heart and few tears. Even though I do not know the family personally, I grew up listening to SCC's music. He is one of my, and Mark's, all-time favorite musicians. Just two months ago we celebrated our fifth anniversary by spending the evening volunteering at the Shaohannah's Hope booth, helping raise funds for grants given to adopting families, during his most recent concert tour. Along with our friends Allison and David, we worked first and then enjoyed the second half of an awesome concert. We have been listening to his new CD practically nonstop. I also feel a bit of a connection, a red thread, with their family since they adopted three of their daughters from China. They even have worked with the same agency we are using to facilitate our adoption.

Maria was their youngest child, only five years old. Her death was the result of an accident, one of those sudden tragedies that leave all who loved her broken and breathless, reeling from sudden grief. I must admit that after reading this article, my mind and heart immediately flew back to many of the things my sister, her husband, and the rest of our family experienced when Natalie's accident, and death, took place last fall. The memories are vivid and painful, and I can imagine rather clearly the shock and grief the Chapman family is experiencing today.

For them, it was an ordinary Wednesday afternoon: the end of the school day, plans underway for supper, kids outside playing. For our family, it was an ordinary Wednesday as well. We had just finished supper when we got the call. In an instant, everything changes. Tonight, I am wishing I could hold all of my loved ones a little tighter, a little closer, for only the Lord knows how many moments we are given.

I Wasn't Expecting to Do This on an Ordinary Sunday Afternoon

2008-05-21T00:55:00.000-04:00

First: I'm over the plague! Finally. And feeling much better, thank you. Other than still not really being able to taste most food, for some reason. Which I doubt contributed to my 3 pound loss at WW this week (yay!! At last, I am a loser), since I still manage to eat plenty, but hey, if I can eat Cook-Out, Chick-Fil-A, and Brusters Ice Cream and still lose weight, I'll take it!!

And now for the BIG news. Look at my new wheels (!):

I have a new Hyundai Santa Fe. It's Slate Blue and very pretty, easy to drive, and so much bigger than the sweet little Honda Civic I've driven for almost 9 years. I'm still getting used to driving up high, instead of low to the ground. And I am still a little in shock that we bought a (gasp!) SUV. Yes, I know how ridiculous gas prices are these days. But my Honda has had major problems over the last few months. Due to a number of things, we had sunk a lot of money into car repairs and we weren't done yet. Both of our cars are aging, and we knew that someday soon we'd need to replace at least one. Plus, we wanted a bigger car to hold more gear, and someday a car seat. Mark wasn't overly crazy about getting a minivan, so we decided to look at a small, reasonably gas-efficient SUV.

On Sunday after church we decided to just go and browse the cars at the dealership. Mark and I test drove this one, and we agreed that it was a great car. The dealership gave us a good deal on the trade, and the monthly payments fit in our budget. Suddenly, we were on the verge of buying a new car. So-- yesterday-- we signed the paperwork, and drove it home. I loved my little Honda so much, but I miss it less and less as I drive my new toy. (Somehow it has already become my car even though we both bought it.)

From this:

To this:

BTW... Does anyone know how to rotate pictures on Blogger?

Sick

2008-05-13T21:38:00.000-04:00

I have been struck with the plague. After 2 days on antibiotics, my fever has risen and congestion has worsened. Will return when I am feeling much better. At least I have time to clean out my DVR list.

Want to get $25 for free?

2008-05-10T00:35:00.000-04:00

I know it sounds too good to be true, but it's not! Revolution Money Exchange is a PayPal-type program that allows you to transfer money online. Just for signing up you get $25.00-- no catch!! All you do is take a few minutes to sign up.

Honestly, I thought it was an Internet scam, until I read that Crystal over at Biblical Womanhood got a check for $500 the other day. For real. She signed up for an account through Revolution Money Exchange, and also referred many friends to this program through her blog. Everyone who signed up through her blog button got their $25, and she got another $10 per friend.

Wow! It's hard to beat a deal like that. Heaven knows we could use an extra $25, what with weddings and car repairs and adoptions, all of which cost plenty o'dough. No pressure at all here, but if you sign up through me, I'd be pretty excited! This is a win-win for everyone!

But HURRY if you want to cash in-- this deal ends May 15!! All you need to do is click on the button below:

Still skeptical? Read this.

WFMW: Cheap fix!

2008-05-07T23:10:00.000-04:00

This week WFMW is a special themed edition: What Doesn't Work for Me. For me? What doesn't work is overpaying for ridiculously overpriced computer accessories (or anything that is not clothing, or shoes. Those, I will spend on.).

I am well known as a total klutz to my family and friends. Recently, I lived up to my reputation by knocking into and tripping over the power adapter for my beloved MacBook, which was plugged into the wall. Naturally, the plug was broken but not a total loss, so I tried to nurse it along by oh-so-carefully putting the plug and the cover back together every time I used the laptop and plugged in the power cord. This sort of worked for about a week. I realized I had to get a new power adapter before I zapped myself.

I got a nasty surprise on the Apple web site, though, when I went to see how much they cost: $79.00. There was no way I was going to pay that much. So, I went to Wal-Mart, bought a $3.00 roll of electrical tape, and had DH tape it up. It's not pretty at all, (actually it's rather tacky) but it's a cheap fix, and that's what works for me!

Go to Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW tips!

Pity Party

2008-05-06T22:05:00.000-04:00

Yesterday marked 16 months since we were logged in with the CCAA in China. There are 358 LIDs ahead of us, and the CCAA has referred only 72 days in the last year (since May 1, 2007). So, the wait ahead of us (and the math involved in figuring it out) is too long to contemplate. We just keep hoping not too much will change in our lives or China's program before our turn comes. This month also marks 2 years since we began the adoption process. Will it be two more? Three more? God only knows. This was not an anniversary I wanted to celebrate with empty arms.

Yesterday, we got some other disappointing news. Not anything I can share, not life-altering, just disappointing.

I gained this week on Weight Watchers.

Sunday is Mother's Day. A difficult day for me personally, although I love being able to tell my mom, Mamapa, and my mother-in-law how much I love them. And my sister, who is an awesome mom. I did mail off the presents today-- a small triumph since I am almost never this organized when it comes to giving gifts. I'm ready for next Monday to be here though. Someone on one of my online adoption forums said she and her husband were having Mother's Day lunch at Hooters, so it's not so "in their face". I'm not sure that I would go there (literally or figuratively) but I totally get where she is coming from.

Last week, a beloved teacher at the school where I teach died very suddenly. It's been a tough week for the staff and students. She is greatly missed, and there is still much grieving both in and out of class.

Another friend e-mailed me and shared about a recent loss in her life, which broke my heart for her.

Tough stuff.

I have so many blessings, and I do count them, but sometimes they seem overshadowed by the hard things. As Anne of Green Gables would say-- a Jonah day. Or week, in my case. I'm sure things'll look better in the morning.

Ok, party over.

The Most Important 5 Minutes You'll Spend Today

2008-04-30T21:35:00.000-04:00

Natalie's first birthday-- and birthday cake!

Six months ago today, on October 30, 2007, my beautiful 14-month old niece passed away. Natalie (or Nat-Nat as family and friends called her) was a happy, bubbly, active baby. She was the delight of her parents, grandparents, and doting aunts and uncles, and her big sister's special playmate. On October 24, she accidentally wandered into a backyard with an open pool and fell in. Although she survived the drowning initially, she died after 5 days on life support. Losing Natalie is the single hardest and saddest thing my family has ever endured. We miss her terribly every day. There is little to ease the ache.

However, Natalie's spirit lives on in many ways. Her parents decided to donate her organs, and now others have the chance to live because of Natalie's tremendous gift. My sister has said that the decision was an natural one to make, and that they are so thankful Natalie was able to help others in this way.

My husband is also an organ donor. Nearly eight years ago he donated a kidney to his brother. So, in many ways organ donation is a hugely important part of our family's story. I have always felt that I would want to be an organ donor, but over the past months the impact of that decision has taken on additional meaning. For years I have had my driver's license show that I wish to be an organ donor, but I recently learned that this may not be legally binding. However, it is quick and simple to sign up to be an organ donor online, and it is a legal decision.

If you live in North Carolina, go here to sign up today. If you live in Virginia (my sister's home), go here. If you live in other states, just Google "organ donation" plus your state's name. It really does take only 5 minutes, but it could literally save the life of someone else someday.

My sister said that someone she met recently (not Natalie's recipient, but another) told her that her donor did not die so she could live, but she lives because her donor could not. Wow. What a tremendous legacy to leave behind. What a priceless gift to give. Won't you consider signing up today?

My two favorite donors-- Natalie and her Uncle Mark

They truly are my heroes.

The End is in Sight!!

2008-04-22T21:39:00.001-04:00

My lame-o excuse for not posting in over a week: it's the end of the semester, and since I prefer to "work to the deadline" (or procrastinate, if you prefer to speak plainly) I have been working my tail off to get my big final projects done. I just e-mailed the last ones off to my prof. Woo-hoo!!!! It always feels so good to be done and have gotten over one more hurdle in this master's degree program. I have a few things to do to wrap up the semester, but unless I find out I have to re-write my literature review (and I pray not)I am done with the spring semester for all intents and purposes.

Plus, we had a busy weekend-- we went to see Wicked (the musical) with friends and also went to a concert on Saturday night. Plus the homework. Oh, the homework. Needless to say, posting got pushed to the back burner along with house cleaning, folding laundry, and returning phone calls. (sorry everyone!) More on our Big Saturday Out in the next post!

It's Fashion Fiesta Time!!

2008-04-13T20:18:00.000-04:00

I actually did take my pictures yesterday, but here it is, Sunday night, and I am just now joining the party. I guess I'd better skip the small talk and get to the important parts.

BigMama asked that we show off our daily uniform, in all its glory. For better or worse, here it is:

Ahh, yoga pants. My uniform after work and on the weekend. After a long hard day, there is nothing more comforting than an elastic waistband and stretchy knit. BTW, I have no idea what those spots are on the picture. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that I pulled all 3 pairs out of the dirty clothes basket and smoothed out the wrinkles before snapping the picture. Of course, they are about to be put up for the summer, when my equally nice elastic waist workout shorts will replace them.

I have a variety of lovely options for tops to go with the yoga pants. A T-shirt is always appropriate, for example.

Yes, I am big on the pig. No, not really. I bought this shirt at the Piggly-Wiggly grocery store while at the beach. As usual, I got slightly sunburned and forgot to pack a long-sleeved T-shirt. Besides, you can never have too many long-sleeved Ts.

Here's a my favorite ensemble for chilly days, or whenever it's warm outside but it's still 60 degrees in our house:

Old Navy gray fleece -- a bargain since I paid $3.50 for it on clearance-- and a basic Hanes T from Wal-Mart underneath. The layered look is in, ya know. Fleece is my new favorite fabric. My fleece yoga pants are my all time faves (they are on the right in the top picture.) Ok, Blogger is being irritating and taking about 5 years to load each picture, so sadly, this will be an abbreviated post. grrr. I'm going to try one or two more...

New spring clothes!! I heart them. The black cropped jacket is about the cutest thing I currently own (now a weekly staple), except for maybe the aqua flats you see in the same picture. I love them the most, especially now that I have discovered the wonder that is the Band-Aid blister prevention stick. They have turned the Shoes of Death into a happy, happy, pain-free experience. Wanna see the cuteness up close?

These shoes make me so very happy. And it's best to end on a happy note, right? What with Blogger being all uncooperative and all. Thanks for joining me in the fiesta!!

People Get Ready

2008-04-11T22:19:00.000-04:00

It's here!! The Fashion Fiesta!!

Stay tuned-- I'm real busy planning all the stunningly fashionable combinations with which I will wow my Audience of One (actually it's two, but I seem to be on a random thing with incorporating the titles of Christian songs into the post. Can you find all of the "hidden" song titles?? OMG, that sounds like a VBS challenge. Now, where was I? Oh yes, fashion.)

In fact, just to get really inspired, I am spending my Friday night on the couch, with my beloved laptop, watching the Miss USA pageant. Lots of lovely, bedazzled ladies! Hosted by Donny and Marie!! I know you are all totally wishing your Friday nights were as thrilling as mine.

We will ignore the fact that, in this pursuit of fashion utopia (nirvana? whatever.) I am wearing ratty light blue sweatpants and my almost-as-beloved-as-the-laptop "Todd's at Tigertail Beachside Grill Marco Island" T-shirt (with the picture of the pyramid of people, hiney-side showing, on the back). I'll spare you an actual photo of this lovely ensemble. The T-shirt is of an undetermined age, since I have no idea how I acquired it. Especially since the only people I know who go to Marco Island with any regularity are my 89-year-old grandparents. Somehow I doubt Mamapa and Granddaddy are hangin' out at Todd's shooting pool during their annual beach trip.

I Will be Here later this weekend with my contribution to the fiesta!! (I may be pushing the nerd envelope with that last song title, but I just indulged in a few chocolate chip cookies and after 10 days of WW and chocolate deprivation, I blame all nerdiness on the sugar rush.)

Are you ready to party??

2008-04-08T21:25:00.000-04:00

If you love fashion, head over to BigMama's blog and get ready to join the fiesta! I'm already planning the outfit I am going to share. :-) Join me-- and BigMama-- on Friday!!

Because a picture is worth a thousand words...

2008-04-07T20:11:00.000-04:00

P.S. Thank goodness this semester is over in two weeks! I am ready to be done with my boring grad school classes!

P.P.S. If you want to see some more hilariously "insprational" stuff, head over to Despair.com. It's worth the trip!

15 months

2008-04-06T21:23:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe it's been 2 weeks since I posted on Easter. Lots of reasons why-- we went to Ohio over Spring Break, work has been super-busy, lack of topics I feel motivated to write about-- but mostly, I just haven't gotten around to it. I'm really good at writing posts in my head but not getting them down on paper... or at least the screen.

Yesterday marked 15 months since we were logged in. We also got our homestudy update report in the mail-- 3 months to the day when I first e-mailed our social worker to get it started. It took forever. On Friday, referrals for this month came out. Only 5 more days were referred this month. Now the CCAA is up to January 9, 2006. Only 361 days ahead of us. Another month has gone by, but it just doesn't feel like we are making any progress.

I used to imagine what my daughter might look like, what leaving for China might be like, collect ideas in a file for the nursery. I haven't done that in a long time. Of course, not a single day goes by where I don't think of AK in some way, and where I am not reminded of just how empty my arms are, but I just cannot picture her at all. A few days ago, a friend of a friend got the referral for her daughter. On her blog, she recalled how right around the beginning of August, she had a very vivid dream about her baby being born. She learned the other day that her daughter was born just days after she had that dream. I just can't even imagine that. I have dreamt no dreams, seen no signs (I refuse to count dead ladybugs), had no indicators whatsoever. I've begun to think of her as just a "mythical baby."

It's been such a long wait, and only God knows how much longer it will be. Some (actually, many) days I wonder if the adoption, if parenthood, will ever really happen. I feel guilty for having so little faith, but there it is. Right now, it's easier to not prepare for a little one; I'm fully aware that this is a form of self-preservation. I guess in some ways it's good to live life without feeling like we are constantly on hold. I (well, Mark, too) am making plans for summer and fall that do not include welcoming a baby into the household (although if a miracle does happen, you'd better believe all plans will be adjusted accordingly). And, since I can't seem to get/stay/be excited right now about this, it's just hard to be enthused about much of anything.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T23:32:00.000-04:00

Happy Easter! Christ is risen today!

We have had a quiet but lovely day. Mark and I spent the morning at church-- we had a fellowship brunch at 9:30, with worship to follow. The worship service was wonderful, and it was so encouraging to hear the message again that we have hope for ourselves and also our loved ones who follow Jesus because of the work of the Cross. All through the service I thought about Natalie and the awesome Easter she had today in heaven. I missed her so much today. I also missed Anna Kathryn today-- even though we haven't met her yet. Maybe by this time next year we will have gotten a referral, or even be preparing to travel (I don't dare hope that we'll be home with baby by then).

We came home and napped-- a direct result of the carb/cheese induced coma from brunch (there was an abundance of breakfast casseroles). Then Mark fixed an awesome dinner (steak, twice baked potatoes, mashed acorn squash, creamed spinach. I ate the last of the jelly beans for dessert.) Mark has been toiling away on homework tonight. I have been ignoring my homework in favor of scrapbooking and wasting time on the Internet. And posting on here.

I did have a small potluck-induced trauma this morning. I decided to try a new recipe for my contribution to the brunch-- a recipe for Baked French Toast I found on Bigmama's blog. It sounded yummy, and fairly simple to make. Unfortunately, I forgot about my tendency to have "new recipe remorse." This is what happens when you decide to make a new recipe for a church potluck or for dinner when company comes-- and it doesn't turn out the way you think it will, and you just wish you'd stuck to the same-old, same-old . As usual, I was running late getting the thing into the oven, despite the fact that I had put it together last night. I forgot that I had to make the "praline topping" before baking the french toast. This involved dumping a lot of sugar and spices into 2 sticks of butter and smearing the mixture on the unbaked french toast. I shoved the dish in the oven at 8:31 and it needed to bake for 40 minutes.

At 9:12, it didn't look quite done enough and we needed to be in the car driving to church. Of course, having never made this recipe before, I had no frame of reference for the doneness. I decided to turn on the broiler to hurry things up a bit. In the middle of this moment, Mark came in to remind me that we needed to be on our way. Now. So, I asked him for his opinion on the doneness of the french toast. He said he really couldn't tell, but if we were late to the brunch everyone would know which dish was mine whether it was done or not. Not what I needed to hear at that moment. After I had a small fit about the fact that taking food to a potluck stresses me out, I collected the french toast out of the oven, wrapped it in foil and dish towels (one of these days I am going to invest in one of those casserole carrier things), and off we went. Thankfully, the baked french toast turned out to be really good-- I will make it again!

** Image of the cross supplied by www.freefoto.com

Maybe I should have been a librarian 50 years ago

2008-03-18T22:10:00.000-04:00

Let me just start by saying that I really do like a lot of things about my job as a school library media coordinator. I particularly like working with kids and teachers, collection development, and of course reading the new books and helping students find books they love. However, lately, each day seems like a battle with our equipment and technology.

Technology is great -- when it works. I'm certainly a lot more comfortable working with all the various computers and projectors and camcorders and video/DVD players than I was a year or two ago. I am, however, a digital immigrant, and I am not a gadget person by nature. But it drives me absolutely crazy when equipment works fine one day and totally messes up the next.

This week my school has been showing movies as a reward for good behavior. We've done the set up many times before, the test run when we got the equipment set up went well, and then today (of course) the sound system went haywire right as we seated 150 wild seventh graders and we started the movie. It did not help my frustration level when one of the APs at the school was really ugly to me (yelling) about the fact that the stupid microphone and speaker were suddenly on the fritz and no one could hear the movie. Which was "The Game Plan" starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, so I'm not sure this was much of a loss.

(Keep in mind that there are home karaoke machines that are higher quality equipment than our microphone/speaker system. We have one 2-ft. speaker to project the sound to the entire school auditorium. We are not talking a Dolby digital surround sound system here, people).

To make a long, annoying story shorter, we (me and my assistant) finally determined that the battery was dead in the cordless microphone. No one in the office bothered to order extra 9-volt batteries as we requested a month ago, so we had to make do with what we had. Which is -- one dying microphone and one that barely works because it appears to have been used as a soccer ball in PE. This is what teachers are used to anyway, right? I did feel slightly vindicated when our instructional technology specialist, who was there to tutor, checked out the problem and agreed that it was the battery and not anything we failed to do in the set up.

This is the latest in about 2 weeks of nonstop equipment "issues". Frankly, I'm tired of it. Give me a book any day -- it's cheap, portable, will not suddenly get a virus, need an extra cord or batteries, or just not work. (I'm also wondering if maybe this is a sign from God that my school administrators need to cough up the bucks for a movie license so that we quit violating copyright every time we show a reward movie.)

I'm ready to go old-school librarian for a while. Give me a bunch of books, an old-fashioned card catalog, and a filmstrip reel and I will weep with delight. But I draw the line at wearing my hair in a bun.

Optimism?

2008-03-12T20:45:00.000-04:00

I just found this article-- it's an essay, really-- and thought I'd link it here (although I haven't actually figured out how to do this yet and so if it doesn't work, just copy and paste the link into your browser. My bloggy tech skillz are coming along rather slowly.) I can identify with much of the emotion and thoughts this author shares about the roller coaster ride that is the China adoption process in 2008...and beyond. Our agency got some WC referrals this week but I am very sure we will not be getting a call. Sigh.

Go here to read the article:

http://www.divinecaroline.com/article/22095/28692

Today was the "Battle of the Books" competition for all of the middle schools in the county. It's kinda like a quiz bowl all about books. Specifically, 26 books are on the reading list each year, from a variety of genres. The kids read them and practice answering picky questions about the plot, characters, setting, etc.

As the official media coordinator, I am the coach. I have a great team-- 11 sixth graders-- and (most of them) read their little hearts out, stayed after school and gave up activity periods to practice, and gave it their all. And, we totally lost the competition. As in, we came in last in the county (9 schools). The competitive side of me is, frankly, a little bummed.

But, the part of me that knows how hard they worked, how they didn't give up today when the questions were obscure, or the opposing teams seemed to get all the ones they knew, how they were great sports and pulled together, knows that we really gained a whole lot more than we may have lost. ( cheese alert!!) We were up against teams made up of all seventh and eighth graders who have competed before, teams where kids do not have to struggle as hard to succeed in school, and schools with experienced coaches. I thought my team did a great job considering our collective inexperience. They were ready to start on next year's reading list after the competition wrapped up today! I think I need to borrow a little of their optimism and drive for some other parts of my life (grad school work, adoption wait, wanting to shed some winter weight gain) and kick my own butt into gear.

Indecisive

2008-03-10T01:29:00.000-04:00

As my dear, dear husband says, "It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind." And I do... frequently! My outfit for the day, what I want for dinner, and now my blog name. I started a blog about 2 weeks ago at http://sunshineandladybugs.blogspot.com. I had big plans for that blog. I wrote an opening post that two whole people read and commented on (thanks, Hillary and Allison!). But I just couldn't seem to get around to writing a second post on it. I really wasn't sure why I had this mental block about it... too tired? lazy? busy? Then it hit me-- the name. I just wasn't satisfied with the name. I picked sunshine because that has been Mark's nickname for me since we first started dating, and ladybugs because they are a popular thing/symbol in the China adoption community, and I think they are cute. When I picked that name and realized that it was available through Blogger, I figured I was good to go. But, it seemed a little too cutesy and generic. Would the name really stand out in a crowd? I wanted something more memorable and meaningful. So, I kept thinking.

Last weekend my sister Hillary and 4-year-old niece Emily came down from Virginia for a weekend visit. We had lots and lots of fun and a great visit. Friday night we enjoyed dinner together (chicken biscuit stew and apple pie) and just getting caught up. Emily and "Uncle Marko Marko" romped and we all played Disney Memory and read Frog, Where Are You? -- one of our favorite books. Saturday was busy: lunch at Chick-Fil-A, buying new tennis shoes for Emily so she could run around safely, a trip to the park and Discovery Place, and finally dinner out at a Mexican restaurant with Caleb and Leslie (lots of talk of wedding plans). Sunday we went to church, had lunch at home, and Emily and I got to hang out while Mark and Hillary took naps. She also got to take a long nature walk with Uncle Mark while Hillary and I enjoyed an uninterrupted chat. We ended the weekend with a trip to Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream.

So, I was thinking about the weekend and how I get the biggest kick out of hearing Emily say "snickerdoodle," which is our little code word to get Mark to freeze and unfreeze when we play tag. She can't say her R sounds yet, and it is the cutest thing. I decided to somehow incorporate "snickerdoodle" into my new blog name, and Allison suggested "the crab" in honor of all the times I or my loved ones are cranky (never, of course. Ha.) Cute, not as generic, hopefully memorable when I start participating in the many many carnivals floating around in the world of blogs. And, the name was not yet taken on Blogger. It was meant to be, and so here I am.

First Post

2008-03-09T21:50:00.000-04:00

Head over to http://sunshineandladybugs.blogspot.com to read my first post!