Three words or less that make me smile, happy and full of joy?

HOME SOON.

I need to work faster.


~mama

Care for a Little Wager?

We just finished the home study and we are starting the dossier.

What month do you predict for a referral?
What month do you predict for trip one?

There's no money involved here...just a little harmless fortune telling :)

Mr. N. and I have our votes...but we won't be telling what they were until the time comes.

Your vote? Please leave a comment. Don't be shy. Share your predictions!

~ Mama

Inky Monday

Did the fingerprints again today. Mailed them off too!

~mama

Burunduk!

A little bit closer to getting our little chipmunk home! Today we mailed off the home study packet and the first of many big checks. Very exciting. We have however been slightly foiled by Uncle Sam...who did not like my FBI fingerprints so now I have to have them redone. Could be another 10 weeks. We have plenty of paperwork to do between now and then so it's no big deal, but the fingerprinting bit wasn't much fun. You think they use the nice electronic fingerprinting? No, it's all caveman style with ink and paper. The police officer was not happy that he had to do this...he said he didn't like getting ink on his hands...and getting out the other stone-age equipment was a pain. I so look forward to his face when I come in a second time. Mr. N.'s fingerprints on the other hand came back perfect. No problem. Oh well, just another hurdle among many more to come I am sure.

For my birthday (which is in a few weeks) my sister-in-law and her family gave me a bunch of adorable clothes for our Burunduk! She also had some beautiful cloth blocks made...and an adorable gnome named Gabe. I will post pictures of them soon! If you go to Two Stray Cats on Etsy you will see them. They are the green ones with the mushrooms.

Here is the Etsy store!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/TwoStrayCats?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=App_Seller&utm_content=shops&utm_campaign=fb_seller_shop

Mama

Catching Snowflakes

I live in Florida so catching snowflakes is virtually out of the question. I said virtually since on occasion we do have snow (on a very very very RARE occasion that is). When we do have snow, the flakes usually melt when they touch the ground...but you can catch them on your tongue. Tiny little fragments from the sky that can be so rewarding to someone that never sees snow.

Only a few more flakes of home study paperwork to catch and we can write this part of the process off of the list! Today is February 9th, 2010. By Friday the 12th (Jordan's birthday!) we will be done with our home study paperwork. We just got the LAST certificate from our parenting classes. Mr. N will get his medical form tomorrow. CPR on Thursday. That's it. Saturday make copies and mail it in!

So what's next?

Home study visit
NOPE! Surprise, we did that last Sunday and it was SO easy. I was freaking out for nothing. I kept the visit on the down low to keep me from being antsy. The social worker was very very nice. He spent about an hour and a half with us asking some general questions all of which we had discussed before. We were pretty well informed thanks to all the reading and the APs that I have become friends with (thanks to you all). The listservs are also helpful. I recommend reading and knowing as much as possible...but the questions are mostly about how you were brought up, your beliefs about parenting, what you will do with the child while you are at work, etc. The walk through the house was probably less than 5 minutes so don't worry about the dirt! Just clean up the clutter. The only question he asked that threw us off was "describe your personality." Yikes, we didn't brush up on this. We nailed the visit. He said he'd have the report written and sent in before Friday.

Registration paperwork.
This is a set of paperwork much like the home study but not as detailed. It's for the agency. Compared to the home study it should be easy. In fact there is some cross-over so I can just make extra copies from the home study. I ordered extra marriage certificates and birth certificates so that isn't a problem. The hard part will be the technical part. They made drop down PDFs for some of the documents but they don't seem to work right. UGH.

Dossier.
Once the registration paperwork is done we will start working closely with the agency on the dossier. This part is more complicated. I'll get into this later in the process. Right now it seems far away and a bit daunting...but then again a month ago the home study paperwork was frightening and far away and miraculously we are here now.

That's the update! I hope that one day other PAPs will be reading our blog and learning from it like I have learned from the blogs of so many before me. I hear about their children and see the pictures and it's hard to put myself in that place right now. It seems like a dream. I wonder if they look back at how they felt when they were at this stage, or if they have moved so far away from it they they have forgotten?

Good night all...and thank you for reading and supporting us!

mama

Confession of a Heartless Woman

Well...not quite heartless. I have made dozens and dozens of paper hearts, but I have to confess that I haven't kept up with making one every day. I have some catching up to do. I'm not a bad person...I'm a busy person. I do feel a little guilty though for not making them EVERY day. I'm still counting the days until we have him (or her) in our arms. Every day we get past brings them a little closer to us.

Today is my mom's birthday! I had planned on taking her to Cedar Key for a boat ride, but the forecast said it would be in the high 50s here...meaning that it would be pretty cold on the water. It think it's probably in the 60s here...still too cold on the water so we postponed the day (she's 70 today!) for a few weeks when the weather will be awesome. My sister and I have a surprised party planned for her tonight. The whole family and a spaghetti dinner at my sisters. Hopefully no one has spoiled the surprise. Well see 2 more hours!

mama

A Dose of Chicken Soup

Borders. Oh Borders. There are tons of books about adoption. I went to the parenting section of Borders today with an entire shelf devoted to...or should I say labeled as "ADOPTION." The shelf however was full of books on the joy of pregnancy and baby names. There was ONE adoption book on the shelf "Chicken Soup for the Adoption Soul." I hate Borders. If you're going to have the shelf GET THE BOOKS FOR HEAVENS SAKE!

The weekend has been great, and things are progressing for us in a big way. We're almost done with the home study paperwork. The actual home study is very soon. I need to train my dogs to behave better. :)

Mama

Sunshine, Sand, Waterfalls, Trails...and you.

I have some really neat seashells in my bathroom window, one of which is some kind of purple sea urchin shell. I found it when we were at Long Boat Key with our friends J and A. The trip was awesome and SO relaxing. Looking at the shells I imagined what it will be like to take our little guy or girl there with us some time. It will be so much fun. Mr. N. and I have been so many places and experienced so much joy in our lives that I can't help but become giddy when I think of all the things that we'll be able to share with our little one. When we drove to Daytona for our seminar we passed some parks and hiking trails along the way and Mr. N. said "think of all of the wonderful places we will be able to take our baby." He's right...and I'm ready.

* The pictures to the right are all from our trip to Longboat Key. You can see the sea urchin shell on the left (just the edge of it). I don't know the little boy but he was awfully cute.

HOPE

Have great hopes and dare to go all out for them.
Have great dreams and dare to live them.
Have tremendous expectations and believe in them.

Cloth and Babies

I was lurking around in the fabric store today seeing if they had anything interesting or new (that was dirt cheap) when I heard a little baby crying on the other side of the store. I heard the mother happily cooing with the baby getting her/him to settle down. She had so much love in her voice.

It made me think of our baby- the baby that MIGHT be crying on the other side of the world. I wondered if anyone was picking him up, holding him, settling him down. This is the part that hurts me the most. So many children, so few caregivers...no one to pick them up when they cry.

Baby, if you are here on this earth today...and you cry...I hope (with a hope beyond compare) that someone picks up you and caresses you.

hugs, kisses, and the sweetest of dreams~

mama and daddy

A Future Day of Celebration

Mother's Day is May 9th.

I hope I remember to do something nice for my mother. A special person that raised 6 kids, at least two handfuls of neighbor kids and a boatload of grandchildren.

Mother's Day.

Maybe 2011 it will mean something completely different for me. Maybe.

Facts about Russia

Hello!

Several people have asked me all kinds of questions about Russia (make sure you read these Jordan)! Here are some links for you guys!


http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Places/Find/Russia
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0930073.html
http://worldinfozone.com/facts.php?country=Russia
http://www.uni.edu/becker/Russian2.html

Enjoy!!

Thank you for being so!

My husband is wonderful! Not for anything in particular that he did for me today...but just for being who he is everyday. I know that I am lucky, and for this I am grateful.

I just got back from a business trip. While I was away I had a wonderful dream. I was on a farm and I came around the corner of a barn and Mr. N. was standing next to a hand-hewn wood fence petting a horse and holding a beautiful baby girl in a yellow dress. The sun was shining down and they had a glow around them that was unbelievable. He looked up and smiled. I smiled back and felt a deep sense of happiness. It all felt so real.

I want to wake up each day feeling like that.

~ Mama

Onward and Upward...slowly

Hi,

I really don't have much to post. Not much is going on. It has been cold here for the past week in the 20s-40s. We are waiting for our FBI fingerprints to clear and Mr. N. has to have a physical (our doctor is on vacation) so we wait. Meanwhile we have signed up for our parenting classes and our CPR class. We have been working a little on the child's room. It keeps me focused and settled and happy. Sometimes we just open the door and stare inside. I like going in there. It is a happy place full of so much joy and hope.

Aunt K and Uncle J are bringing us a glider rocking chair! We are really excited. They are supposed to bring it tomorrow and come see the room too.

Well, like I said...not much going on. I am posting two pictures of the room.

mama

Sunday Deals

Yay! We finally found the crib that we were looking for- used, online and LOCAL! Just a few dings and scratches with Sealy mattress BARELY used for $80. I was happy. We brought it home and bleached everything down and gave it a good scrub. It looks great it the room! Aunt K and Uncle J have the dust ruffle and a few other items. It will be nice to get those (thanks guys!). We just need a small dresser with changing table capability and a nice comfy glider rocker...and maybe a little bookcase if we have room and we're done! Well, except for the baby which won't be around for a long while :( I hope that LONG WHILE goes by fast!

We finished a few more paperwork items (thanks Aunt J and Grandma!) and took pictures of the house this weekend. I think the HS packet will be ready to send in soon. Maybe this week (fingers crossed). Having days off this week really allowed us to accomplish a lot towards our goal! Way to go Mr. N. and Mama (patting us on the back).

Vacation over. Back to the real world tomorrow. Over and Out.

Mama

A Note to You

Dearest little baby,

Today is January 1, 2010. I don't know this...but my guess is that you are probably born by now. You are soft and sweet and in your crib. The time in Moscow right now is 4:48 a.m. It is January 2nd for you! As always you are on my mind tonight. When I look into the sky and see the moon I know that we are sharing the same moon (I hope you get to see it some times...but if not I will make sure that you will see it often in the warm arms of mama and daddy). When I wake up and look outside and see the sun I know that we are sharing the same sun (I hope you get to see it some times...but if not I will make sure that you will see it often in the warm arms of mama and daddy too). Please know that we love you. Please know that we wish you were here with us...instead of where you are now. You belong here. Please know that we are working as fast as we can so that the three of us can share many many moons and suns...and stars. We love you. Happy New Year sweet baby.

loving you forever,

mama and daddy

*The image tonight is a work by Kana Handel called "Prayer for Someone Crying." Her work is amazing. and I recommend checking out her site http://kanasarts.com/MainFrameSet.html. Thank you Kana for the beautiful things you do!

Sugar Cookies with Sprinkles...and a Tall Hot Chocolate

Winding down the day with cookies and hot chocolate is not half bad. I highly recommend it. Today is Tuesday (otherwise known as The Day of Giant Accomplishments). I woke up early this morning and cleaned the floor in the new room and moved a few things back into the space. The paint looks so pretty (thanks Jess)! We are thrilled. Every time I walk down the hall I open the door and squeal with happiness. We have a bunch of Mr. N's toys (made by his grandpa) on the floor...next to his old toy box (his dad's old footlocker painted red) and the rocking horse that his grandpa made for him. It makes me so happy and excited every time I walk by...I just can't resist opening the door...and knowing that we are also opening a much BIGGER door into our future with our little one (wondering where you are today?)

In order to get the room ready we had to rearrange the storage/laundry room and the office (to make room for the guest bed and bookcases). It was A LOT of work (all done by Mr. N., my hero). The house still has a lot of things piled around that need homes...one whole side of the hallway is piled high with kid's books. It will hopefully be done this week. We were going to do it tonight but we're just too darned tired.

Today we spent a few hours doing home study paperwork. We have finished a large chunk. We have one form to complete and notarize, we need to order birth and marriage certificates, and Mr. N. needs his work letter...that's about it! Oh...and we need to take photos of the house. The home study checklist has 25 items in all- some are super easy and others are more of a challenge. I also signed us up for our required Hague Convention adoption parenting classes. They are online courses- 5 altogether that we need to take. We also need to take infant/child CPR...but no one is around to sign up with since it is the holidays (same issue with birth and marriage certificates).

In addition to all of this we did a few other domestic tasks AND had a nice romantic dinner (loving the gift certificates!).

*please note that the image of the cookies does not depict my sprinkled sugar cookies.

Gift Certificates from Heaven (or from people we love)

Today I bought the shelving to go with the storage bins. Mr. N. and I put it together as soon as we got home. It is currently residing in the dining room next to the counter until we get the room straightened out. I also bought a crib sheet, some flannel blankets and a bumper pad...they all look so cute with the family objects we already had. Tomorrow= cleaning and paperwork (after breakfast and a little family time of course). Thank you all for the Target gift certificates! Woo Target!

*the shelf system is white NOT green...it has three bins; red, green and beige. I didn't get this blanket but the sheet has the same pattern...and my bumper pad is polka dot on one side and striped on the other...I like this one too!

I Want that...and that...and that....

Yay! Today is Christmas! So many good presents today. I am very thankful for everything...but most of all I am thankful for our friends and family who are so supportive! Thank you all! Merry Christmas!



So today I decided that I should try to figure out what I want for the room (other than the paint and the handmade stuff and stuff we already have). I got greedy and added a few things to my wish list :). I'm still going to check out yard sales and of course getting a crib and some other stuff from friends would be a bonus (yes, you person keeping a crib in the attic...I'm talking to you- hehe)! We'll see...most of our friends are way beyond the "baby stuff" phase and have given away or sold all their goodies long ago. We may have to start fresh. I'm going to keep an eye out for a small dresser. I think we'll have white furniture since the floor is so dark. We plan on taking the Christmas tree down early (yes I am a little sad) so we can put away everything and start getting the room cleaned up and painted! We are trying to get things ready for the home study...and we want it to look pretty for the pictures that we need to provide. We also got several gift cards so I plan on looking for a few things this weekend-like a little rug and some shelves from Target for the pretty red, green and beige storage bins that I asked mom for (she had NO idea they were for a baby room! Ha, fooled ya mom!).

Merrrrrrrrrrrryyyyy Christmas.......goodnight and many hugs.

Mr. N. and Mama...and the girls (Miette, Alma Jean and Zoey Louise)

One Giant Leap for Mamakind (and Mr. N, too)

whooooooooooooooooosssssshhhhhhhhhh...that's the sound of me exhaling. I've been holding my breath for so long that my lungs were starting to ache. Mr. N. and I kept the adoption between us for months...and Saturday the words finally came out of my mouth "mom, what would you say if I was to tell you that "J" and I are adopting a baby?" We were walking in the woods in the cold. I was drinking hot chocolate and she was keeping her hands warm with coffee. I was also using all my strength to keep from sobbing. The tears would have frozen to my face. It was the hardest and best thing I've ever shared.

I don't even know how she replied. My ears were ringing and all I heard was the ringing and the wind in the trees. I can say that her reaction was happy. She's happy. She asked a lot of good questions. I like that.

After telling mom it was much easier to share. Sunday we told Mr. N's parents. His mother was beyond delighted. His father...I think he was happy and shocked because he didn't say much. I called our friends D and L and asked L to be a reference. I was happy to tell her that we had good news and that our babies will grow up together. They are such good friends and I am honored that they will share this experience with us. I then called my sister and talked to Mr. N's sister. Everyone has been happy and supportive.

Monday I told the Director and then some staff and friends at the office. Everyone is happy-some have a lot of questions. The most popular questions are "why Russia?" and "what will his/her name be?" Mr. N told another friend today. She will be another reference for us along with Mr. N's mom and L.

I have a lot of people making baby things for us! We love homemade things and we are lucky to have creative friends and family. Mr. N. used his birthday gift certificate to buy paint for the room. We might do some work on it over the holidays. Mostly we have a lot of cleaning and paperwork to do.

Please forgive the rambling. A lot of happy moments have happened since we last posted. Sharing this new joy was a giant leap for us...but only a tiny step on our adoption journey. If you're reading this thank you from the bottom of my heart for your love and support. I'm off to cut a paper heart. :)