Update.....?

It's been about 4 weeks since we were fingerprinted for our background check. We can probably expect to hear NOTHING for the next 4-5 more weeks. Ugh. After that, our homestudy begins. So, its safe to say I will not hold my baby this year. I knew that, bums me out a little. But it's all about God's timing...

I think because we are actually in the adoption process, this season has me longing a bit stronger. Fall is my favorite favorite season! The weather is crisp, the colors are beautiful, there's a refreshing energy in the air. I can't wait to help my son/daughter gear up for school one day...:)

I did some shopping around town for the house. I am so tired of pretending baby stuff doesn't exist. Today I was like - I'm buying baby stuff. Now, keep in mind I had to choose wisely. We are far from knowing the age or sex of our child, but we are praying for an infant. I hear the chances of receiving an infant through DHS is highly unlikely. Why is that not stopping us? Again, I refer you back to my faith in God. I'm a big believer that he will give you the desires of your heart. To ensure the items would be used, I just looked for bigger sizes.

So my "gender neutral-make sure the size is 12mo+" baby items search was on.....

*My thought bubble while perusing the infant/toddler section at Target and TJ Maxx...*
"Pregnant women are damn lucky with their stupid due dates, the option of knowing the sex, and their general idea of what size the baby will be. Look at all these flipping options for women with ovaries."

Meanwhile, in adoptionland, I pick out a bib, some sweet green and yellow turtle washcloths, a Paul Frank beanie with matching shoes(bright blue), and......some socket covers. Wooo. Madness.

That was about it for gender neutral adoptionland. A word to all retailers....um, not everyone knows the sex of their child, or even the age! Do you think you could not splash every childs item with pink or hardcore boys colors? Is it a onesie with trucks or one with cupcakes? Isn't there a happy medium,like grey, yellow, mint, white, red, orange? I'm just sayin'.

Retail therapy helps the days go by, plus it prepares me little by little for baby. And I had a good day.

Tomorrow, lunch with Mom and Gramma E. Saturday we spend the day with friends, and Sunday a concert! John Legend!! Yee-hoo! Have a good weekend :)

They are my kids too.

It has been difficult to turn on the "Mom" switch on Fridays at 7pm, and then turn it back off on Sunday evening when we drop them off. I love and miss them so much. They make me laugh, they break my heart, they keep me focused on my goals to give them a wonderful life. But I had no idea they would keep me up at night, worried about their future. Amaya whispers in my ear that she has no friends, and I am devastated for the rest of the night! She is shy and reminds me of myself when I was younger. I want to now run to the playground and force other girls to see how awesome she is! But, that's also scary. Ha!
So I can't just turn that switch off and wake up Monday morning and not think of her in the lunchroom with her little tray.
So I pray for them. I shop for them throughout the week, I pick out paint colors and browse through curtains to get ideas for their rooms in the new house.
They are my kids.

Happy Father's Day, 2010

Here is my Dad who is awesome. I first spoke to him when I was 15, then met him 8 years later. It's a great relationship thats a work in progress, but a wonderful and special one nonetheless. I have some wonderful qualities that I now know are from him. Thanks Dad, for making me awesome too! hahaha

7 Months Later...

Our Adoption Foundations Training classes are done. Yay!

Next week, I meet with the AMAZING casweworker who facilitated all of the classes, to turn in our application and set a date to get fingerprinted. This will start the criminal background check, which will take....2 months. Ugh.

If only I had some sort of decorating projects to keep me busy....

Moving Day!

Ok, not today. But some time next month, as we got the rental home we wanted. God is good.

This home has 3 bedrooms, a HUGE yard, a utility room/office off to the kitchen, and is in a good Portland location for us. God is SO good.

I think this home fits our family now, as well as our future family.

Yay!

New.

Good news! We have one more class left, to adopt a foster child. Our application will be turned in a couple weeks from now, after our last class.Then fingerprinting,background checks, and the home study. Then we will be approved. I am really excited.

We want to be matched up with a child ages 0-2, not gender specific. Madeline (the wonderful class instructor whose name I love) informed us that since that age range is so popular with families, it may take longer than the usual 6 month wait. Little does she know i've waited 31 years to be a mommy and I am learning to be patient. There is so much to do in the meantime. Between the adoption process, house hunting, school starting in the fall,working, spending time with Lito's kids. I'm listing all of those things, pretending the wait wont be agonizing. ha.

Many Things....

We are hunting for a new home for our soon to be growing family. We don't know when he/she will arrive, but we know God has something cooking :) And currently, our 3 kids are sharing ONE bedroom and this is not working well. So onward we hunt for our home.

On the adoption front, we are done with 6 of our 8 classes for adopting through the state. Then, the criminal/background checks, then the home study, and hopefully soon after, our son or daughter. I know we will adopt from Ethiopia someday, but for now, we are thinking more "locally" :)

I am excited for what awaits.