Happy New Years!

Happy New Years! This was the first year in a very long time that we stayed in but it was nice and relaxing! We just didn't have it in us for a big night out. December kicked my butt and I need to save all my fun for a good friends upcoming wedding! We enjoyed a nice night with great friends and the kids stayed up very late and were not in bed until 10:30!!! We will be paying for that tomorrow! The CCAA has also kicked my butt again and only referred through December 19th this month. Agencies started receiving referrals today, so congrats to all those who will see their babies faces for this first time. We are still a long way off. 2008 will be our year but I have no idea when. Overall 2007 was a great year. We went to Disney, my niece was born, we moved into our new house, Shea started Kindergarten and Bryce started preschool, the Red Sox won the World Series, the Patriots won all 12 of their regular season games, and three families from the "99ers" brought their girls home! Hopefully 2008 will bring everyone health and happiness and of course we hope this is the year we bring Lily home!

Christmas Pictures

Merry Christmas

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas. We had a fantastic Christmas Eve. Started at 4:00 mass and then our Christmas Eve party at our house with family and friends. I cooked an 11 pound tenderloin and I was so happy it came out great. I was a bit nervous...nobody wants to ruin Christmas Eve dinner for 30 people!! The night was so much fun and Santa Clause even paid us a visit. By 10:00 the kids could barely get through our traditional reading of "Polar Express" before they were fast asleep. This morning it was clear the Devine family had been good all year because the living room was filled with presents. Shea couldn't believe Santa got everything from his list, including the electric Scooter, and Bryce is loving his Scooby Doo people! Pat was very generous and bought a new video camera for me from Lily. I am sure I will be figuring out how to download video very soon! Stay tuned...

Welcome Home!

Welcome home Lia!

The "99ers" are home! We went into the airport with Dave and Sandy and had quite a night! Nothing in the China adoption world happens easily or quickly so of course their flight was delayed 2 1/2 hours. A 9:30 landing turned into a midnight arrival. The four of us were kept busy watching the Celtics and having a few drinks until all the airport bars were closed down at 9:00. With 3 hours left of waiting we were on a mission and ended up taking a shuttle to the airport Hilton and they had a great lounge. We even made a new friend at the airport and we invited Sally along with us. Sally was at the airport picking up Sean, Laura and new baby Sophia! Well as the time came to leave for the terminal again I could bearly keep myself together, I was just so excited to see the new families. Then at 12:05 the first family came down the staircase and we met Sophia and then shortly after cam Nancy and Tom with Caroline and Dave and Marile with Lia. They all had the babies in their carriers and they looked like they had been with these girls forever. The girls are so precious and they just looked around and took everything in. It wasn't long before they were giving smiles and showing us all their new tricks. It was quite an emotional evening and one that I will never forget.

It's a First!

Both my boys sat on Santa's lap without tears!! Shea was more than happy to walk right up to Santa and give him his list but Bryce was a little more hesitant. Once Bryce saw Shea sit on Santa's lap he figured the man with the white beard couldn't be so bad! Of course they both told Santa that they wanted a toy that I have not bought yet. Off to the store I went; we can not have tears on Christmas morning! I think I am recovered from the blow of the small referral batch last month, I can at least talk about it without tears. I am still praying for a May referral and in a few weeks when the next batch comes out we will have a better idea. Onto better news... Our "99"er friends will be home in Boston with their daughters this Wednesday night. I will be at the airport to welcome them home. It sounds like their trip to China has gone smoothly and both the babies and the parents have adjusted nicely. They have private blogs so I can't post the pictures but I will tell you they are beautiful children and seeing the pictures of the girls being placed in their parents arms are just amazing. I know how long they waited and I have seen all their tears of frustration but to see their tears of joy is just wonderful! Our time will come...

Referrals

Referrals finally arrived today and the cutoff was December 14, 2005. 6 Days. We are not getting our referral in April. I can't believe I am writing that but it is just not going to happen. 6 lousy days of referrals just sucks! My agency let us know last Friday what the cutoff was so I have had a few days to process it and I can honestly say that I am dealing with it the best I can. I was angry all weekend but I am now just trying to get in the mood for a joyous Christmas season! Oh, but first we have to do another home study update! Yes, our social worker is coming out to the house tomorrow and we will have our 3rd home study written and then we will go and have our fingerprints taken for a third time. The fun never ends.

Happy Birthday Lia!

November 30th friends who are traveling next week!!

Yesterday (11/30) was our friends, Marile and Dave, daughter's birthday. They are traveling on Thursday 12/6 to China and will be united with Lia on 12/9. We decided to celebrate with all our "99er" friends with dinner at our house. The night was fantastic and ended with cake and presents for Lia. It is hard to believe that the next time we see Dave and Marile, Nancy and Tom and Laura and Sean will be at Logan airport with their daughters! Our friends Dave and Sandy (who we will travel with) plan on going to the airport to welcome them all home. Nothing will keep me away! We can't wait to meet all the girls!

Dave and Sandy, and Pat and myself... Traveling sometime in the future!

Thanksgiving Recap

It's over. I was thankful for all I have, I cooked a turkey, had lots of family over, ate a lot of turkey, cleaned a lot of dishes and at the end of the day I was still sad that we had another Thanksgiving without Lily. Don't get me wrong, the day was great but I just am really ready for this wait to be over. Alright, back to Thanksgiving... I use the day to try and take a picture of the boys for the Christmas card. It was not happening this year, Bryce was just not in the mood! The one picture I did get had the lawn furniture in the background. So, back into the sweaters the boys will go and we will try again! The boys had a great day with their cousins and the adults were treated to puppet shows throughout the day. Pumpkin martini's were flowing so when my grandfather had to ask "who's baby Lily?" I was able to let it go. My grandmother quickly reminded him that Lily is the "Chinese baby". I just sat quietly and couldn't believe the conversation that was actually happening. Well, next year Lily just has to be here for Thanksgiving! Oh, that reminds me that today is that day that I said I would stop commenting on. Yup, 22 months of waiting. I know I said I would stop counting but I just can't so we will just go without the visual this month. So far this month there are no rumors about when referrals will arrive or what the cut off will be. I will keep you posted!

Hope and Perseverance

Hope without perseverance is anxiety. This is what was talked about during the homily at church yesterday. These words resonated with me. They were said and I knew exactly what they meant to me. In order to get through this wait I need both; hope and perseverance. I have hope most times and I feel like I am persevering but I know that sometimes I have lost hope and I have felt like giving up and my anxiety about our adoption goes up. I plan on holding on to these words for the next few months, I think I will need them!

Our "99er" friends found out that they leave on December 6th and return on December 19th. They will be united with their daughters on Dec. 10th. I am so excited for them and can't believe in a few short weeks 3 of the "99er" girls will be home with their families!! I am starting to feel like we are getting closer but I think it is only because our friends are so close to having their girls and it feels like it should be happening for us. Referrals should be arriving in 2 weeks and we will have a better idea if we are still on track for April. I plan on spending the rest of the week preparing for Thanksgiving. Let the cooking begin!!

Men at Work

We started taking the wallpaper off the walls in Lily's room! It was a family affair and we have made a lot of progress. The boys were very excited to help but their attention span is not that long and soon enough they left Pat and myself to complete the job. I overheard Shea telling Bryce we were painting the walls pink because girls like pink! So cute! Shea then informed me we should get some "China stuff" so Lily remembers China when she comes home. I just can't get enough of that boy, he is the sweetest 5 year old! My new thought is to put white bead board up on the bottom half of the wall and then paint the upper half of the walls pink. I am starting to get nervous about 4 pink walls! I have some thinking to do; bead board or not??

Yesterday my "99er" friends received their TA! TA is travel approval and that means they will know very soon when they will be traveling. They will definitely be going to China in December and be back home with their daughters by Christmas!! What a gift! This is the time of month where nothing exciting happens in adoption world and I just obsess on when the next set of referrals will arrive and how far they will get. As of now it looks like the next set of referrals will arrive around December 2nd and I am hoping for another 8 days or better. The new rumor on RQ today is that the wait will probably reach 4 years. Our wait of 2+ years is hard but I can't imagine a 4 year wait and it makes the chances of Lily having a sister from China very slim. For now I am going to continue to focus on the positive and hold onto hope that April will be our month!!

Finally, a picture...

Every year the boys get invited to Aunt Alice's work for a Halloween Party. The picture was taken last Friday and Alice was nice enough to send it to me. Thanks Alice!! Scooby Doo is really enjoying that lollipop!

Trick or Treat

No pictures! I had to have my camera overnighted to me because I left it at a friend's house and UPS never delivered it yesterday. The good news is that my in laws let me borrow theirs but it is the "old fashion" kind so I can't download the pictures. The boys were adorable and had a blast! Bryce was Scooby Doo and his tail would wag between his legs whenever he walked and Shea was a transformer. So now I need to start throwing away the candy or we will be eating it until next Halloween!!

Our agency confirmed yesterday that the cutoff for referrals this month will be December 8th. I REALLY wanted it to be at least December 10th but 8 days is more than the CCAA has done in a while. I am always tryng to stay optimistic and December 8th is actually not that bad. I am still thinking that we could get a referral in April and that is only 5 months away!

Our friends who received referrals last month are now waiting for TA. TA is travel approval and once you get that you can book your flights. We are really hoping they can travel in December. The waiting never ends until we have our daughters in our arms!

World Champions!!

The Boston Red Sox are WORLD CHAMPIONS and we are the proud owners of this swing set! We purchased bunk beds from Jordan's and now we get a refund check. I can't think of a better way to spend the refund check than on a swing set. Who needs a vacation? Not me! I couldn't even wait for the refund and I had to go out this afternoon to buy it. The swing set will be delivered the day before Thanksgiving and the boys are so excited!I have three very happy boys, 2 little ones who can't wait for their new toy and one big one over the win of his favorite team! Being a Boston sport fan is a fun job right now, with the Red Sox as World Champions, the Patriots undefeated and Boston College as the # 2 college football team in the country!! With that said I am so happy baseball season is over, now I can watch my shows on T.V. That's the deal in this house; during baseball season we watch the Red Sox but during the off season I am in control of the remote!

21

21 months of waiting. I am so tired of these LID post, maybe I'll just stop documenting each month of waiting.

Really good news on the rumor front and Rumor Queen reported that:

"A European site says the cut off will be the 12th, possibly the 13th. There is no information about where this information comes from. They say they are “confirming this”, they aren’t treating it as a rumor but as fact. "

Sooo, that puts a little smile on my face. Hard to believe that maybe we will see more than 7 days of referrals this month and I am trying to stay grounded. I will say that it is nice to see my fellow January friends starting to get excited! If the CCAA gets to December 12th then we would be right on track for an April referral and maybe even a March referral! I think it may be time for us to start taking off the wallpaper in Lily's room.

Go Red Sox!

All is quiet on the adoption front. There is one rumore that the CCAA will at least get to 12/10/05 for the November referrals. I really need this rumor to pan out if I want an April referral. I wish I was in a better place emotionally right now but I'm not. I am so tired of this wait and I feel very anxious about how may days will be matched with the next referrals. I need so see some significant progress (yes, 10 days would be considered significant).

The good news is that the Boston Red Sox are in the World Series. We are all very excited but we also may be getting a $1400.00 check if they win! In the spring we purchased some furniture at a local furniture store and the deal was that if the Red Sox won the World Series we get our furniture for free!! We unfortunately had to leave our swing set at the old house when we moved so we told the boys if the Red Sox win they get a new swing set. Hopefully in 2 more weeks The Red Sox will be the World Champions and the boys will have a new swing set in the backyard!



Let's Go Red Sox!!

Catching Up

The good news was that our 11/30 friends received their referrals. The bad news was that 11/30 was the cut off. PEOPLE, we are NOT making a whole lot of progress! Ok, back to the good news. So, we found out on Thursday September 27th that referrals were coming. Our friends received their long awaited phone call on Wednesday October 2nd and then they finally received their pictures on Tuesday October 9th! All the girls are absolutely beautiful and watching our dear friends during this process had been emotional, to say the least! The process worked for them and now they will hopefully be traveling to China in December. I have to have faith and lots of hope that the process will work for us. This brings me back to the not so good news. The CCAA gave referrals out for 5 days, only 3 working days. Yes, we are finally out of November but I still have no idea when we will receive our referral. I think we could still have another 6 - 8 months to wait. Does that sound familiar?? It should because that is the time frame we were told when we started this process 2 1/2 years ago! I am hoping and praying we will see some progress with the November referrals, it's all I can really do. With any luck it takes 3 months to get through Dec. and three months to get through January, that leaves us with an April referral. That is my best guess at this point. Before I sign off I would like to welcome three precious girls to our "99" family. Welcome Caroline, Lia and Sophia!! We can't wait to meet you all. If you happen to see Lily around let her know her family is ready for her!

Celebration Time!

Finally, something good is happening!! Last Thursday our agency sent out their monthly update saying that November 30th would be receiving referrals with the October batch. Pat gets the updates so he called me with the news. I cried tears of Joy for my November 30th "99er" friends! Their wait was so close to being over! I came home and immediately called Nancy, one of my "99er" friends and she had not yet read the e- mail. So, I was the one to tell her that her referral was coming! The tears kept coming from both of us. After that there was nothing to do but wait until our agency received the referrals. Luckily, Nancy's baby shower was on Saturday so we had a reason to celebrate. It was great seeing Nancy and the other "99er" gals (Laura and Marile) and to be able to congratulate them in person. Well, today was the day that the agency received referrals and the phone calls arrived. All three couples received referrals for their daughters and Patrick and I are so excited and happy for them. We can't wait to meet the newest additions to our "99" family!

20 Months

20 Months ago today China took our dossier and logged us into their system. The review room then looked at our file months later and luckily we were asked no questions. Now our file is in the matching room and we are just waiting our turn. It's been a long 20 months and we are ready for our journey to end. Unfortunately, we still have many more months. In the end we will have out daughter home but for now the count continues!!

No news yet on referrals for this month. My November 30th "99er" friends are waiting patiently. We need something to celebrate so hopefully we will have good news very soon!!

Florida Fling

I spent the weekend in Florida with some great bloggy freinds! It was a reunion trip and when we met last year we really thought we would have all our girls for our 2nd annual. We were lucky enough to have one home and she was the joy of out trip. Husbands were invited this year but Pat had his annual football trip so he was unable to attend. It was so nice to meet the men and a few new women that I had not met before. The Hilton's were fabulous host and the day at Epcot was fantastic. Some of the highlights of the weekend were: Riz's smooth feet, pictures around the pool, lamb burgers, Lia, the truckvanbus, all the fabulous gifts, champagne toast, pet peevs, laughing and beer around the world with Eric. I could go on and on and I know I am leaving a million things out but I don't ever think I could capture the weekend with a blog post. I will leave you with a few pictues.

Survivor China

I haven't watched Survivor in a few years but I has to see this one! It is really the same show over and over but in a different location. As with all things China related I am already obsessed and plan on watching this season. Can't say I was sad to see "chicken" go!

Nothing new in adoption world. We are probally still 2 weeks away from referrals and there are no rumors yet about the cutoff. I however am leaving in 10 short hours for Sunny Florida. I have reunion weekend with a few bloggy friends. Really looking foreward to this weekend and a little morale boost. Have I said lately how much this wait sucks!

Never Forget

I know I will never forget September 11th. Our lives were changed forever. I will also never forget the moment I was told that I knew two of the heros that died for us that day. Today in Attleboro, Mass. Lynn Goodchild's family passed out red, white and blue carnations and asked people to commmit a random act of kindness in Lynn and Sean Nassaney's memory. I ask you all to do the same for all the 9/11 victims.

And Now Preschool!!

Yesterday Shea went to Kindergarten and today I sent Bryce to preschool! Both my boys are in school and I have no babies home. Bryce did great at school and never even looked back to give me a wave. Pat and I brought Bryce into the classroom and told him we were leaving and he just stood at the tool bench and said "bye". It was so much harder for Pat and I to leave that classroom and to leave Bryce than it was for him to leave us! So now I have 5 hours a week alone. I of course thought Lily would be home by now and I would be spending 1:1 time with her; but as I have done for 2 years now I readjust my plans. I have decided to spend the time running. I used to run and at one time I called myself a "runner" but over the last 5 years finding time to run has become more difficult. I want my baby home and I am feeling impatient but I again find myself thinking how grateful I am for the opportunity to have had this extra time with the boys and now to able to pick up an old hobby!

Kindergarten!!

Today was the day I put Shea on the bus to start kindergarten! Overall things went well; except for the fact the bus driver tried to drop him off at our old house!!! Luckily, I had prepared Shea that this may happen and he spoke up and told the bus driver his new address. No tears were shed by either of us but it was very difficult for me to hold them in. Even with only attending 1/2 day Kindergarten Shea was exhausted when he got off the bus and it took a while to get anything out of him. When he did talk the jist of the conversation was that gym class was cool! I can't believe how fast 5 years goes and now my baby is in kindergaten. This really starts a whole new chapter of our lives. I attend my first PTO meeting next week, so weird to even say that! Tomorrow Bryce starts preschool, I hope they're ready for him!!

Packing Challenge

I have recently joined a yahoo group where we work on packing for our trip to China. Each month we focus on something different and in August the challenge was to accumulate everything we will need for our diaper bag. I had so much fun gathering all the items and now my diaper bag is packed; even though we are months away from a referral!! I plan on bringing a backpack for my carry on and then using it for my diaper bag once in China. I will also have a smaller bag with me for shorter outings. If you want to view my list it is here under the post titled "finally". It felt so good to work on something adoption related and to make progress! My biggest fear is that we would get our referral after 2+ years and I would have nothing done. My hope is that after our referral I can focus on preparing the boys for when we are gone (making meals, leaving them small gifts, etc..). So now the next challene is packing everything else we will need for the baby, I'll let you know how I do at the end of the month!

Labor Day fun and another referral batch

Spent Sunday at the Buffett concert. Yes, the concert was at 7:30 but it really was a whole day event. We prepared for the tailgate and then we tailgated Buffett style with lots of Margaritas and food. The concert was at Gillette Stadium and we had fantastic seats! We were one level up from the floor to the right of the stage and I really could see Jimmy's face. There is something about Jimmy Buffett that just makes me feel so carefree and happy! Well that carefree feeling and happiness ended Monday morning, and not just because of the margaritas I drank Sunday night! Referrals were sent out and the CCAA matched only 4 days and they are now up to 11/25/05. I knew they would not finish November but I couldn't help but to be hopeful. Sooo, October will be the month our 11/3o freinds get their referrals. They are NEXT!! In a few short weeks they will see their babies picture. This will give me the boost I need to endure this never ending wait. I am still hoping for a February referral but March is more realistic at this point. I was successful at getting through the summer without Lily and now a new season begins. I guess I should go think of all the great things the boys and I can do together and convince myself that March is a prefect time for a refferal!

19 months...and still counting!

I almost forgot that today is our 19 month LID anniversary. Thanks Allyson and Ford for the reminder! It is hard to wrap my mind around this wait and the fact that we still have so long to go. Referrals ahould arrive again sometime late this week or right after Labor Day. The good old Rumor Queen is saying 11/29/05 may be included in this batch. I am hoping the CCAA matches at least up to 11/28 so the 29th would be a nice surprise. Even better would be if the CCAA could match up through 11/30, I have a few friends who would be very excited about that!! I had a ladybug sighting yesterday, this is suppose to mean good luck so just maybe the 30th will be included this month, although I am not counting on it! Happy 19 month anniversary to all my January friends.

Waiting.....At the Beach

Last week I missed the second consecutive waiting families meeting at our agency. I decided to take a break after the June meeting because it was getting difficult to sit through them and I was feeling worse about the wait after the meetings. The best part about the meetings is seeing the "99"ers; so this week I had waiting meetings at the beach! On Thursday Marilee and her son Jack came to visit the boys and I at the beach. We had a great day and talked about all the things Marilee needs to do because hopefully she will be getting her referral in October!! On Saturday Nancy and Tom, another "99er" couple came to visit us at the beach. We withstood the wind and spent a few hours at the beach and then went back to the house for apps, dinner and a beautiful sunset. Our friends; Greg,Sue and their daughter Maeve, who are regulars at the beach, also joined us! Sue is an avid reader of my blog and now understands the China adoption process and understands all the lingo. Sue was able to join in on our excitement because Nancy and Tom will also be hopefully getting a referral in October!! I will use this opportunity to say thank you to Sue for taking the time to understand this process and for cheering us all on during this wait!! Sue and Greg also have the most amazing daughter. Maeve is a beautiful child who has stolen my heart this summer. I get to see her at the beach almost everyday and she always has a hug for me, it's like she knows that I need a little extra loving this summer! Maeve loves the boys and I love seeing them all together. Thanks Maeve!

I think I will be making a comeback to the agencies meetings in September and hopefully we will be looking foreward to all our November friends getting referrals in October. Something good in this proess needs to happen soon for me because even with a great summer I am feeling "burned out" on this wait. It is hard to belive that we could still have another 6 - 8 months before our referral, that was the timeframe when we first started!! I finally figured out how to add pictures at the end of my post, enjoy!

The boys and Maeve

Enjoying a sunset

Tom and Nancy braving the elements at the beach

Back from R & R

Pat and I just got back from a few days of vacation in Newport, R.I. We had a wonderful time that consisted of sleeping, eating, drinking and a little reading. After a pedi and a massage I am feeling very relaxed!! The boys had a wonderful time with Nana and Papa and I got lots of hugs from them when I returned. We were gone 3 nights and we were just dying to get back to see them. I am just not sure how I will survive 2 WEEKS in China without my boys!!

While on vacation I actually had time to watch a little T.V. and I saw a news story about a group of soldiers who just returned from duty in Iraq. This story really put my wait in perspective. These brave men and women served 22 MONTHS over in Iraq! Their families waited 22 months for them to return, not knowing if they ever really would come back. A lot of these reservist had just returned from Bosnia when they then got deployed to Iraq. I can't iamgine not having Pat around fro 22 months and how hard it must be for these soldiers to have so much time away from their family. I am not happy with my 18 month wait, never mind the 24 months I will probally wait but at least I know Lily will be coming home to her family at the end. I do not know any one personally serving overseas but I will defiently be saying a few extra prayers from now on for our brave men and women serving our country and for their families!

August Referrals

Another 7 days closer to Lily. The CCAA matched through November 21, 2005. The "99ers" were not included and it looks like it will not happen until October. They are only 9 days away but it could take 2 months to get through those 9 days. In the past few months I have stopped looking at referral pictures but today I could not resist. Most of the babies were really young, 6 - 8 months and just so adorable! Pat and I are off for a few days of vacation, without the boys. No worries though, the boys will be with Nana and Papa at the beach and I am sure they will be a little bit spoiled!

Progress with Nursery

I couldn't wait any longer; I had to see the crib up! This weekend Pat finally gave into my nagging and assembled the crib and I immediately put the bedding on. I love it all together! We bought the dresser when we moved and the pink on the drawers can change colors to white, yellow or green. I will probally take the mirror off and use the dresser as a changing station. I still need to paint the room and look for a book case, curtains and lamps. Hopefully we will start the painting in the fall, but we still have plenty of time. I find myself just walking into Lily's room and sitting in the rocking chair to refelct on this whole process. I am a believer in that "things happen for a reason" so I am at peace with this extended wait but I can't wait to have my baby in the crib!

18 Months

In Chinese tradition, the number 18, normally 十八 (shí bā), can also be read as 幺八 (yāo bā), which sounds like 要发 (yào fā), meaning that one is going to prosper. Thus, building floors numbered "18" are often very expensive in China.

That's just a little tid bit of info. I thought I would pass along because we have officially been waiting 18 months! I really have nothing else to say about that!

Still no firm info. about referrals this month. I am hoping they at least get to November 21st but further would be great. We should hopefully know something by the end of next week.

Anniversary

Today is our 8 year wedding anniversary, Happy Anniversary Pat! We have finally been married for as long as we dated. Yes, we dated for 8 years but when you meet as teenagers it does not seem that long. You would think I would be much better at this waiting game!! We have also spent more than 1/2 of our life together which really seems like a long time! I am really looking foreward to celebrating tonight over a nice dinner and a few glasses of wine. It is the time of month where the wait is excruciating, I just need to know how far they will get with referalls this month. The positive rumor floating around last week about making it into December does not seem likely, hopefully we will at least get another 7 days!

Where is Lily?

Well she's in China! We just don't know where in China. Last night I had a dream and in my dream I kept repeating " Jiangsu". That is the name of a Province in China and I don't know why I was saying it but I am wondering if this is where Lily is right now! My friend Dave keeps a cool map that he updates each month. The map shows a sampling of where the babies are being referred from. Looking at Dave's map shows me no recent referrals from the Jiangsu Province lately but we never know what will happen when it is our turn! BTW Jiangsu is # 12 on the map.

Weekend Fun and CRAZY RUMOR!

We had a great day at the beach on Saturday with the "99ers" and then the Murphy's hosted a fabulous cookout! It was so great being with all our friends that we have made over the last 18 months. I actually think I felt some excitement in the air with the November families. Their wait is close to being over sometime in the next 1 - 3 months! We talked about what we think referral day will be like, traveling and "gotcha day". We talked about registering and nurseries. I think we are all staring to see the light at the end of the tunnel! The weekend was followed by a nice lunch with Kathy today. Kathy shares a LID with me and is with my agency so we will travel together. Kathy only lives an hour away so we were able to meet for lunch and a little shopping. We did a little damage at Baby Gap, Gymboree and Pottery Barn Kids! It was a great afternoon!! OK, Now it is CRAZY RUMOR time! RQ reports that an agency told an early December family that they would get their referral in August. There is no way this is going to happen and I refuse to believe it, it is to good to be true. Oh, how I wish to be proven wrong but I just don't think it will happen. So I guess the roller coaster begings for this month. Hold on tight!

Quiet around here

It is that time of month where there is not much going on in "adoption world". The next set of referrals should be here around August 6th and they will probally cover only another weeks worth of dates. At this point I have stopped trying to predict when our referral will arrive. I am now obsessed with when November 30th will receive their referrals. I think that once November is completed there could be a slight speed up and maybe the CCAA will start referring 2 weeks at a time. Also, I am so excited to see three of our November 30th friends get their referrals! I am so excited to welcome home some of Lily's first friends!!!

July Referrals

Referrals have arrived through November 14th. Another week down. Progress but still very slow! At this rate it could take another 3 months to finish up November, I have lost all hope for a referral before Christmas. I have not lost ALL hope because I know we will receive a referral and we will one day bring our daughter home. We will just wait because that is what we have to do.

Happy Birthday Shea!

Shea turned 5 today! So hard to believe that 5 years ago I became a mom. Shea is a sweet and loving little boy who always has a twinke in his eye. He LOVES to play and has the best imagination. He always has a hug for us when we walk into the house and I still get lots of cuddle time from him. My boy is getting big and older and I wish I could capture his youth and put it into a bottle. I am so proud of his kindness and he is a great big brother to Bryce and can't wait for his baby sister to come home!

Shopping Time

I could not resist! I went into TJ Maxx tonight with two tired boys and I am sure TJ Maxx would have preferred I just went home! I actually went in looking for something for my foyer but ended up in the baby girl section. It was not my fault, I just followed the carriage. The ladybug bins match Lily's bedding and I have plenty of stuff to fill those up! The picture is of 8 girls from around the world and next to each girl is the word for "hello" in that country's language. I love the picture and it will look perfect in Lily's room. I think it may be time to start taking down the wallpaper...

17 Months

That time of month again, LID anniversary. 17 months ago today we were logged into the CCAA for a 6 - 8 month wait. We are still here waiting and not going anywhere fast! I am actually doing OK with the wait, better than I have been in the past. Don't get me wrong, I still have my moments of sadness but I know our time will come and Lily will be home with us and the pain of this wait will be a thing of the past. The summer has offically started and although I never thought 6 months ago I would have another summer without my little girl that is exactly what is happening. The boys and I had a great day at the beach today with friends and I am excited for many more summer days at Minot Beach! Referrals should be coming next week and I think they will probally get to November 15th or so. Rumor has it that the CCAA should be done referring November by the beginning of September. I really want that to be true and then at least our "99" friends will have their daughters home for the Holidays!

Happy Birthday Bryce!

Happy Birthday Bryce! My baby turned 3 today. Three years ago he was born on father's day and on my grandmother's birthday. Bryce celebrated his birthday today with his Great Nana Brown, he is so lucky to have a great grandmother (and a great grandfather!)! Bryce is a funny boy whose personality is really beginning to shine and he is always making us laugh. Bryce lives live with a lot of passion, he loves hard, he plays hard, he tantrums hard! Bryce was only 9 months old when we decided to adopt and it is so hard to believe we are still waiting. In some ways the wait has allowed Bryce to be our "baby" a little longer and he defiently needed that. I think that Bryce is now ready to be a big brother!

Amazing Pictures

I found this website on Rumor Queen this weekend. Her site is about much more than just rumors! Anyways if you click on the link it takes you to a web page called A Child Right. Click on the picture in the bottom left under "news" and it will take you to a photo album with pictures of the orphanages in China. This organization brings filters into orphanages around the world that allows children to drink clean water! We take clean water for granted and after reading about this organization and the work they do I feel compelled to make a donation. This organization was in China this past May and they took lots of pictures of the children and there are pictures of very young children, including newborns. What this means is that it is possible that Lily could be in one of those pictures. Once we get her referal and find out what orphanage she is in I will defiently go back and take another look at those pictures. I was overwhelmed looking at the pictures, knowing we could be looking at our daughter or at least looking at pictures of children that could be the same age as Lily right now. I have seen pictures of the orphanages before, but if this is your first time it may be difficult to see. The hardest pictures for me to see are the ones of the infants drinking from a bottle propped up. It is a comfort to know that the children are now drinking formula with clean water and our daughter could be benefiting from this organization.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all the dad's in my life; especially my dad, grandfathers, father in law and of coure my husband! Watching Pat be a dad to our boys is amazing and the boys have one fun, patient and loving father. I can't wait to see if Pat has tea parties as well as he play superheros!

Weekend Fun

Great weekend! Started off with a visit from a great friend who I have known for many, many years. We had a nice visit and it was great seeing her, although I was a bit distracted by the addition to my family for the evening. We had the pleasure of babysitting my 8 week old niece, Addison. I am out of practice with infants so my entertaining skills went out the window! Sorry Aimee!! We had Addison until Saturday morning so I was up at 4AM giving her a bottle and a bit tired by Saturday afternoon. I forget how often infants eat and need their diaper changed! It was great having a little girl in the house and seeing the boys with her was just so cute. They wanted to hold her all morning and loved just holding toys up in front of her face. Shea asked when Lily was coming and was not happy with my answer. I told him she would be here around Christmas and then immediately said, "probally after Christamas". Shea was upset when I said after Christmas and it broke my heart. I sometimes forget that he has been waiting as long as us for his little sister and I am sure that 161/2 months feels a lot longer to a 4 year old! On Sunday we made the trip into Cambridge for the Dragon Boat Festival. We met our friends Dave and Sandy and Sean and Laura. The weather was beautiful and the festival was fun and filled with lots of adoptive families. I love seeing other families with their children from China and I can only hope that next year Lily can join us at the Dragon Boat festival.