Steps on a Journey

received certified copies of birth certificates

received certified copy of marriage license

received first reference letter (beautifully written) from my dear friend, Theresa

Every journey begins with a single step, and it feels really good when we check off the "single steps" on our To Do list.

School Days

Soon it will be August 1. That is when I will start to experience my back-to-school, summer-is-almost-over meltdown. Just the other day, I whined to my hubby, "I only have thirty-five days left of summer vacation!" I said it with panic. I said it with desperation in my voice. How could I expect him to understand? How could I expect empathy from a man who is lucky if he gets one day off a week? He just said, "I'm biting my tongue..."

Why do places like Office Max and Staples insist on back to school commercials in July? I want to scream at the television, "HEY! I'm on summer vacation HERE!" They don't care. Staples doesn't care about my pain.

True, people who aren't teachers can't possibly understand. Don't get me wrong- I like my job. I DO. I am just going to really miss the summer.

Angels...

I love this tile.

In other news, the room is painted and we have hung the wall lamp that we purchased at Pottery Barn Kids. We are using our lampshade on it with the dragonflies and ladybugs. Yes, it's just one little lamp, but I look at it every time I walk by the room. I try to imagine what the nursery will look like months from now, whene everything will be much more of a reality.

It's nice to daydream.

Thankfulness

Busy as a Bee

Things accomplished in the last week:

sent off signed and notarized service agreements to our agency

received USCIS fingerprint invites

confirmed first home study meeting for early August

ordered certified copies of birth certificates and marriage license

contacted employer about employment verification letter

contacted all three references with directions for reference letters

made doctor's appointment for me

filled out Police Clearance and Child Abuse Checks -will mail tomorrow or Friday

went to Chinatown in Philadelphia to celebrate the start of our process!

Yippee!

We just received the phone call today at 12:25 that we have been approved by our agency! I am so happy! It seems the perfect reason to stop doing my housework!

Next Step

The agency notified us that our application has been received and they will contact us within five business days to let us know what comes next if we are approved. Every step is so exciting!

More Wishful Shopping

Bookshelf:


100 Good Wishes Diaper Bag:



If only we had a million...or a zillion...dollars. If anyone out there is a math teacher or an accountant, sorry for the "zillion." Is there such a thing? I think not.

However, I did buy something over the weekend which I had posted about earlier. I saw it in the clearance bin at Burlington Coat Factory! It is this lampshade:



It was online for $39 plus shipping, so that would have been about $45. I got it in the clearance section for $18! They also had the bedding to match, but it wasn't as cute in person as it looked online.

Sisterly Love

My sister is my best friend in the world. She is so supportive of us adopting. In addition, she is equally excited to be an auntie. She is especially excited about us adopting from China because she has always had a love for Asian cultures ever since she was a little girl. She has big plans for her niece already!

Today she knew that we were mailing in our applications and she gave me a beautiful card. Inside was a very special, very tiny ladybug pendant. I feel very lucky to have her in my life.

Signs

Tonight we went out to dinner. After dinner, we went to Borders to look at the Chinese language tapes. We both want to try to learn at least a little. So we bought Pimsleur's Mandarin CDs. On the way home, we popped in the first CD. Just as the CD started, Ken pointed to the passenger window where I was sitting. I looked out the window expecting to see something, but what was crawling inside my window? Yep. A ladybug! I thought it was very neat that we saw her just as we started listening to the CD- the very second!

Well, she stayed on the window the whole way home. I made Ken run upsatirs for the camera to try to catch it. I took a photo, but his windows are tinted, so I don't know if it will turn out. We'll see when the film is developed. We opened the door for more light and she flew away. I sighed, "I don't know if we have her" as I looked at the picture preview. He just smiled at me and said, "We have her" and pointed to his head. That's why I married him. He's the sensible one. :)

Flowers & Ladybugs

Here is the dress that I bought for Jade which I posted about a few days earlier...




I've gone a little crazy with the flowers in the yard this year!


They are along the front wall:



On the side of the house:


In the front corner of the lawn:


By the garage:


This does not even count the one we have in the back on the deck, etc. I may need a twelve step flower addiction program soon.

Supernova

Call me crazy, but I am a schoolteacher with a crush on Tommy Lee. Not a serious crush, mind you. You don't have to worry about me.

Ready to Mail

Okay, ready to mail are:

Application to the agency

Application to the home study agency

Application with documentation for USCIS

Home study first appt. set up for August 11

Progress is being made even though it feels slow.

Hooray!

Friday will involve a whole lot of money orders and a visit to Fed Ex.
I have never Fed Ex'd anything before.
I wonder if I can just go to one of the authorized drop off points
or if I should drive farther to the Fed Ex'd staffed site.

I am excited beyond measure! :)

The Collectors of Stuff

I admit it- both my husband and I are packrats. We are infamous collectors of "stuff." Oh, we have stuff saved that we don't even know we have saved for that day when we may someday "need it." Bear in mind, this even accounts for 99 cent items we could easily buy new 15 years from now if that day ever comes. But no, we choose to store them instead just "in case."

With the beginning of our adoption process, we have decided to clear away the stuff. Most of it is in our basement. Boxes and boxes of things. We had a garage sale last summer and went to the local flea market a few times to sell. We did really well, but we still have stuff left over. We decided to hit the flea market one more time this summer before donating all the rest to the Salvation Army.

So we went to the flea market yesterday. It's odd to watch people look through your stuff. It's interesting to see what they consider treasures and what they pass by. There is no rhyme or reason to it. A 13 year old, red-headed girl with her Martha Stewart Mom bought my vampires book along with my tribal tattoo book. Martha, beware. A fellow teacher was overjoyed at all the teacher items I had for sale. A woman chatted to us all about birds and animals as she bought items from me. I learned about people's medical ailments, siblings, jobs, etc.- all while they browsed through my tables of items. I liked listening to everyone. I liked hearing their stories. It gave me a visual picture of all the new homes where my "stuff" will now live.

Bye, stuff. Have a good life.

Window Shopping in my Heart

I could consistently keep adding items to my "wish list" for Jade. Newest items that have caught my eye are:

to clean or not to clean...is that even the question?

I am having WAYYYY too much fun with this blogging business. It could become something that prevents me from cleaning my house. Ummm...do I mind that? Yes, I must mind it. I HAVE to mind it. It's my hope that once we send in the application on Thursday and if we are approved, that we will get everything ready for the home study. So I should get things started, right? I'd rather sit and read others' blogs, though. I'm going to have to rein in the enthusiasm if I am ever going to get anything done around here!

I am not sure how you respond to people's comments on here. if someone comments and you want to answer, do you go answer in his/her own blog or in your own? I don't know the etiquette!

I want to try to post some photos. I am new to this world, so I hope all goes well. I really enjoy seeing people's photos as I read their writing. It makes you feel like you know them just a little bit more than if there were just words on a page. So here is my attempt to be more than words on a page:


The two of us at our *gasp* 20th high school reunion last August


Livin' in the Wild, Wild West (okay, just visiting Jackson, Wyoming)


My two babies- they have no idea how their world is going to change!

I, Pilgrim

Well, the application is ready to mail. We just have to wait until Thursday for my doctor's appointment for a letter from the doc and then we shall mail! From what I've heard, most people with our agency hear in about two or three weeks whether or not they are accepted. If we are, then we will phone the home study agency in Philadelphia and get the ball rolling. I know we have a long wait ahead of us, but we have been talking about this adoption, planning it, attending conferences, etc. for so long that it really does feel like now we FINALLY starting. It feels like it will really be a reality!

Okay, I probably shouldn't have...BUT...the other day I was out shopping and I walked past the children's section. There it was- this little dress staring at me. STARING at me, I tell you! Lime green in color with little reddish pink ladybugs all over it...and two ladybug buttons. Well, I picked it up, looked at it...imagined what our little girl might look like in it.

So I bought it. Our first outfit for her. We haven't even sent in the application! I thought for sure my husband would think I'd gone off the shopping deep end (which I am quite close to on a regular basis), but he thought the dress was lovely.

We hung it in her closet. I visit the dress regularly. Little pilgrimages to the dress. It's a sign that one day she will be here.

Just Getting Started

Well, this is the start of something new for me. I hope that this is a place where I can record our ups, our downs, and our in-betweens on our journey to adopt our daughter from China. It will be our first child, so I hope it is also a place where I can make new friends, read about others' experiences, and hopefully gain some "Mommy tips."

I find myself devouring others' adoption blogs. I could sit and read them all day long! Being a teacher and off for the summer, well...let's just say that only feeds into my addiction! I love seeing the photos of everyone's beautiful children...new nurseries...reading about the excitement, the fear, the waiting, the hoping...

We are just getting ready to mail in our application to our selected agency, and then I guess IT ALL BEGINS for us!

I hope this is a place where can record some of my own hopes and fears as my hubby and I embark on the most important "adventure" of our lives.

If you stumble across this journal, please say hello! :)

In the Beginning...

This is the very first post in a place to record our very special journey to our daughter, Jade...

It is my first blog ever, so I am not so sure I know quite what I am doing. I'll get the hang of it yet!