Doctor's report

We got the call from our pediatrician today. She said things look good. So, we emailed FTIA and told them we are accepting our referral. We signed the papers this evening and they will go to the agency tomorrow!!

Tatertot took her baby brothers picture to school today. She was so excited and was so proud. She was jumping up and down when she showed his picture. Cuong is going to be such a lucky boy. He has a great big sister!

Christmas cards

I had planned to get my cards done 2 weeks ago. I wanted to put a pictures of Cuong in the cards, so I waited. I waited some more, and then more. Now that we have his picture, we were able to get the cards done. I have almost 80 cards to mail.
Cuong has a few pictures that were taken when our FTIA coordinator was in Vietnam. He is wearing pink stripes and pink poka dots. I love those pictures. They were taken when he was very young. Cuong has come a long way because the pink outfit pictures show just how tiny he was in the beginning.
Tatertot picked out 2 pictures to take to school today. She is wearing her shirt that says, "I'm the big sister". I've had it since this summer. She is excited to tell her friends!

Only 7 more days until Christmas!!

REFERRAL

Just 1 day short of 15 months after turning in our dossier to FTIA, we received our referral. Cuong was born June 30, 2007. Coung means health and prosperty. His pictures show a little boy who is full of expressions.

I was at school, walking my students to the room, when the "call" came through from our agency. I asked if I could call back when I got the kids to the room, so I ran around trying to find someone to watch my class. I called J- to tell him we had a referral and I would call him right back with the details.

We are expecting a FEDX package today. It should have the pictures and copies of all his paperwork.

finally posting

Well, it has been over a month since my last post. Things have been slow and extremely frustrating. We are still waiting!!! Not much else I can say....waiting and frustration.

Still Waiting

We got a call last week saying that we had hit a stand-still with our paperwork in Vietnam. We have no idea when we will get our referral. The good news is our agency director is on his way to Vietnam and will be looking into our situation. There seems to be soo many things that causing problems for families. All are different, but the results are the same. Families are not getting referrals or traveling to get their child.



On different topic...
Tatertot had a great Halloween. She loved having her face painted green and hair teased to be the Wicked Witch. She loved saying, "I'll get you my pretty!". I went out the next day and bought a few costumes for dress-up. WOoo Hooo, they were 75% off. Her favorite is her bride dress. She has us sing, "Here comes the bride" as she walks down the hall. I think the mermaid dress is adorable. This is such an imaginative age!!

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

I know a lot of you may have seen this, but if you haven't, you MUST check it out! She is halarious... Click on the YouTube link below and then "Mom Song". Hope you enjoy!!



YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

Our weekend

We went to eat Chinese at our favorite restaurant on Friday. When we got home, we realized we didn't have cable, internet or a house phone line. We were amazed at how peaceful it was. I do admit, I missed being able to get on the computer!!

Saturday, I went to get my hair cut and some hi-lights. I was wayyy past getting it done. That evening, J- and I went out to eat and to a movie. It had been a long while since we had been out- just the two of us.

Sunday morning, Tatertot and I decorated a lantern for the Autumn Moon celebration. We glued gold and red stars on a white lantern. She found a heart sticker and wanted it to be glued on for her baby brother. We all got ready for church, and got there early. Tatertot sang in church with the children's choir. It was her first time singing for the church. They sang 4 songs and they did a great job.

There was a huge crowd at the FCC event. We enjoyed the hayride, picking a pumpkin, and making a family picture frame. One of the highlights of the evening was when the kids let a balloon go with a note to their birth family. Tatertot wanted to "write" her note by herself. "She was saying "thank you, I love you, and I miss you," as she "wrote" her letter. The letters were tied onto the balloons and released. Then, the kids had a lantern parade. It was a great evening.

Our paperwork seems to be moving along at a steady pace, as far as things go in Vietnam. It is hard to believe we could have a referral in 4-6 weeks.

Top of the list

We are now at the top of the list for a boy. We know that a child's second medial announcement was to begin Sept. 1st. This is just one, of several more hurdles, that must be met in order for a referral to be made. We know it is still going to be a while, but we are hoping to have a referral by early November. "Hope springs eternal...". Even though our hopes for travel by the end of the year are gone, we still hope to be home by Valentine's- J's 50th birthday.

Congrats to E- and her family. They have received a referral for their son. He is completely adorable! We hope travel approval comes quickly.

All for now.

M-

Rope dragon

We went to a local festival on Saturday. As we were leaving, I found a stand that had dragons made out of rope. They were very colorful and made from Jute rope. I asked the lady were you find Jute in Asia. She stated mostly in the Philippines, but dragons were all over Asia. We chose the one that was blue and red. So, "baby brother" has his first dragon.

1 year today!

Well, one year ago today our dossier was sent to Vietnam and our wait began. It is amazing how time has past! There is a family leaving next week to the new province for their two boys. It is good news for these boys with special needs. We continue to hope that the process for our son progresses at a steady pace, and we will get a referral soon.

Tatertot has changed tremendously in the past year. Her legs are longer, she is more confident, and a strong passion for life. Her preschool is in full swing now and she is adjusting to her new schedule been pretty well. She is now taking great naps, anywhere between an hour to 2 hours. I do not look forward to the days she stops taking naps.

J's- great niece has been with us since last night. She is about a 1.5 years old. She is an easy baby and slept great. Tatertot has had a hard time sharing her parents. If I sit on the floor playing blocks with her cousin, she plops in my lap. She has done pretty well with sharing her toys, but sharing her parents is a different story. At this moment they are both sitting on J's lap listening to a story. They are so cute!

This has been a good test of what it will be like with 2 kids. I better start going to water aerobics more than once a week!~! I'M GOING TO NEED MY STRENGTH

Shopping, World fest, and other thoughts

I have been looking through blogs of families in or have been in Vietnam. I have found some places I definitely want to shop while we are traveling. The first place is called Vietnam Quilts. The Vietnamese women, who would otherwise have a difficult time working and staying with their family, make the quilts. I have a few quilts that I like but will make my mind up once I see them. I will post about other places in the next few posts.

I also look forward to the water puppets and bringing some of them home. We went to the World Fest on Saturday. Tatertot loved making her own puppet. She named her "Tatertot Just Like Me". Of course her name for Tatertot. The Thai steamed dumplings and the Vietnamese Bakery were mine and Tatertot's favorite. J- loved the chirizo taco made by a restaurant from Mexico. He also stated that he wants his birthday cake to come from the Vietnamese bakery. **Note to me**

It is now looking unlikely for a September referral. The paperwork process for Vietnam has changed. It isn't great to have to wait, but it will happen.

All for now...

Referrals, referrals...Where are the referrals??

Our agency has not had a referral for a very long time! The anticipation of referrals has been evident for several months. We are hoping to have a referral next month, but realize that it could easily be October.

We have also been told that it could be any where between 2-6 months before we travel. That means that IF we get a referral next month, it could still be between November and March before we travel. That is actually 1 year later than we were initially thinking our adoption would take.

On other news, Tatertot has started gymnastics class. She has had one lesson and really enjoyed herself. I hope her enthusiasm continues. She enjoyed the trapezee and trampoline work the most. She has also joined the church choir. She has a strong interest in music. She sings, makes up her own songs, and hums all the time. There is nothing sweeter than watching young children (age4-10) sing.

First Post

After much thought, we now have a nursery theme. We will be using dragons for the "big guy's" nursery. Now the fun begins, looking for dragons. Thank goodness for the internet!

Not much going on the adoption front. We are still waiting! We are excited for the families that are expecting their referral next month. Makes us next in line for a boy! Woohoo!!