16 Months!!!

I just posted and completely forgot to say that today is our 16 month LID anniversary!! The move really is keeping me busy. So 16 months down and I wonder how much longer??? 4 months?? 6 months???

Memorial Day Weekend

Started our weekend off yesterday with Shea graduating preschool! My baby is going to Kindergarten, so hard to believe. I loved his preschool, his teachers, friends and his friends mothers so I am sad to see Shea leave. Bryce starts 2 mornings a week in September so hopefully he will have the same experience. Shea did great at his concert and even sang the songs, huge improvement from last year's spring concert! We started moving things into the new house last night and today we will spend a day at the beach and then spend all Sunday and Monday moving more boxes over. We should be sleeping at our new house by next Wednesday night once the rugs are done.

Matching has begun this month so the June referrals ahould be arriving hopefully by the end of next week. I am hoping that the CCAA gets through the first half on November. The move is defiently making the time go by fast!!

Thanks Dave!

Dave (aka Dave and Sandy from our travel group) cheered me up yesterday when he sent me an e - mail with this picture attached. Dave started to work at translating Chinese characters to English and vica versa. He found the symbols for Lily. Apparently, they don't call the flower Lily in China, they call it "bai he hua", or something close. The image shows the symbol for Lily in Chinese and a translation. If that is not enough, Sandy is actually learning to speak Chinese! I think we are sticking close to Dave and Sandy during our travels. I plan on learning a few words in order to comfort Lily but a second language is not in my future!

Reflections

This month is flying by and I can't belive we will be moving in just a few more weeks! Last week we had our waiting meeting and it was great to see all the "99" ers. We also met another couple with a 1/26/06 LID so they will also be traveling with us. Mother's day was a little tough. It is not the actual day that is difficult becasue I have so much to celebrate; my mom, Pat's mom, and being a mother to TWO wonderful little boys. It is just that it is another milestone that passes that we still do not have Lily for. We thought for sure last year that our daughter would be here with us today. It was fun to see how excited the boys were to celebrate Mother's day and they even made me french toast and delivered it to me in bed! I also have a spa treatmemt coming to me soon, I think I will save it for when I am really in need of a little pick me up! The rumors sound good for the next batch of referrals and people are saying they could get through the 15th! We have a few good freinds who have a LID of 11/30 so I am really hoping they get a referral before the end of the summer. Watching our 11/30 friends get referrals and prepare to travel will get me through the last few months of our wait. So, I know that next few weeks will go quickly and hopefully the next batch of referrals will give us something to be excited about.

The 99ers...

Nancy & Tom, Sean & Laura, Melissa & Pat, Dave (Sandy taking picture)
Marilee and Dave

Who are the 99ers?? They are a fabulous group of waiting parents that we have met over the last 15 months of waiting. Our agency has waiting meetings once a month and we try to go every month. First we met Dave and Sandy and they share a LID with us so we bonded right away knowing we will travel together. The four of us began meeting every month at the "99" before our meeting and the group grew. Tom and Nancy, Marilee and Dave, Sean and Laura all have a November 30th LID and they also became "99"ers. I can't imagine going through this wait without this wonderful group of people. We all come from different backgrounds but we are all on this path to China together. We all have had different highs and lows through this wait but we know that only each other understands what this roller coaster ride is truly like. Thank you "99ers" for becoming a part of my adoption journey and becoming true friends!

Is she born??

This morning I woke up and read my daily blogs. Dave and Sandy (Wren's blog on my sidebar) really got me thinking. If Lily is eight / nine months old at time of referral then she may have already been born this past February / March. It is difficult to think that Lily may already be 3 months old and I try not to think about it to often. If Lily is born then I have to wonder where she is...Is she in foster care or an orphange? Is she healthy? Is she with Wren? Is she being held and loved every day? These are questions I ask myself and hopefully one day soon the blanks will be filled.

Referrals are out!!

Referalls are arriving and they are from October 27th - November 1st. This is an improvement over the two days from last month but not enough of an improvement to get Lily home for Christmas. I think there is still a chance for a November referral but that would probally result in travel in early January 2008! On a brighter note, a lot of families are receiving referrals this month; including Wide Horizons. I love reading the referral announcements and seeing all the cute pictures and just watching families coming together. I would love to include some links to referrals but I can't figure out how to include a link into my post. I guess I have something else to learn over the next few months!