You're three today! I can hardly believe how fast the year has gone. It's November 29th. This day is so important in both of our lives. Not only is it my birthday, God decided to place you on this earth on this day, too! On 11/29/2005, I boarded a plane and flew to the other side of the world to meet the daughter I longed for. God gave me the best gift I could ever ask for the day you were placed in my arms. You bring great joy to our family. Daddy and I will never be able to tell you enough how much we love you and how proud we are to have you for our daughter. I love you baby girl!
We've been so busy the last week or so. Our three boys are in the heart of basketball season, so we've been running non-stop to try-outs and practices. We love it and can't wait for games to begin.
In adoption news, we feel like we're making progress. Our agency sent our documents back to us to have them county and state certified. Normally the agency does this step for us, but because our state (Maryland) requires county authentication in addition to state, we asked to do this ourselves. Our agency is located in Oregon and we didn't want to risk our dossier being lost in transit by going back and forth from county, state and agency. Anyway, we were able to authenticate all our documents on Wednesday (11/21) and had them sent via overnight mail back to our agency. Our documents should be sent off tomorrow to the Vietnamese Consulate in San Francisco for authentication. After that, our dossier finally gets sent to Vietnam where it will be translated and logged into the DIA (Department of International Adoption). From there, we get our official "number" and the wait begins!
The past few weeks have been a roller coaster of emotions within Vietnam adoption community. I follow several adoption blogs and chat rooms--frustration, anxiety, and panic fill people's posts. I'm not here to defend my adoption or add to the issues at hand. I respect those who have chosen to speak out about their feelings on the current problems with this program. I have decided to keep my opinion on this topic private. I will not defend my agency or criticize others about the agencies they have chosen. I will say that I pray that we all find peace within our own journeys and keep our hearts pure and open.
I've been trying to roll with the punches and be as optimistic as I can. From the start of this process, I have felt such assurance from deep within that our sweet baby will be home. Day after day, my assured confidence slowly started to chip away with each new piece of unsettling news. The fact is, we don't know how this will all unfold. It's up to our government and a country that is culturally different than the US. We all feel so vulnerable and willing to grasp at the littlest piece of good news that comes our way--dissecting it and making it much bigger to give us that peace that everything will be all right.
I'm not proud to say that over the last week or so, I've been feeling like our baby from Vietnam will not come home. Instead of digging for that assurance trapped somewhere within, I chose to come up with a "Plan B". My Plan B consisted of spending hours on the internet looking for waiting children from different agencies, different countries. I know there are so many children out there "waiting" to come home. My own daughter, who we adopted from China in 2005, was on such a list. My panic button was telling me to jump ship and head towards higher ground....adopt a waiting child. As I combed through the lists, looking at the beautiful faces of children in need--I suddenly realized that although I have a heart for all orphans...MY CHILD is in Vietnam. For the first time in weeks, I feel confident that God will continue to see us through this journey, as He has done from the very start. My husband and I never thought we'd be going through this process again. We have three amazing sons and a beautiful daughter. Our house is busting at the seams! God laid this fifth child on our hearts and we know she is meant to be here. So...
I'm back to Plan A! I'm taking chances. Putting full faith in God that He will bring home the child He designed for our family. The stakes are high, but we're pushing all our faith to the middle of the table...taking our chances that everything will be just fine.
I love the song in the video clip below. My daughter's latest music interest is Celine Dion...she just loves her! I thought it was fitting that the song is about taking chances, jumping off the edge--not knowing if there is solid ground below...perfect.
Did anyone see Kellie Pickler (from American Idol fame) on the CMAs last night? Poor girl, it broke my heart! She performed a song written for her mother that left her when she was two. Watching her pain as she sang made me think about my daughter and sweet-baby-girl-to-be. Although they will have the love of their mother, I hope and pray that not knowing their biological mothers doesn't create a devastating hole in their hearts. I will do my best to be the best mother I can be...which includes finding the right words to help fill that void.
I saw the trailer for this movie a few months back and it looks really good. I love John Cusack! It looks like a great movie to see for those of us in the adoption or foster care community. Maybe I can drag my husband to see it this weekend. Here's the trailer---it's called Martian Child.
Oh joy!!! It Came!!! The form that confirms that we are officially "PAPER PREGNANT"! When the form came in the mail today, I wasn't certain that it was what we've been waiting for. It took less than a week to get here! It stated that it was an I-797C...which I found out is the same as an I-171h! Anyhow, we have it...and we are doing the SNOOPY DANCE!
Hubby and I have not gone away ALONE since we brought Luci Bella home from China. We are sooo long overdue for a getaway (at the beach!) and we're excited to do this:
Festival of Marriage 3-Day Weekend Retreat "Fall Festival of Marriage is a Christ-centered enrichment weekend sponsored by LifeWay Christian Resources. Events are held at 12 locations throughout the country, packed with workshops to help couples focus on their relationship with God and with each other."
No two marriages are the same. Sure, there are common problems in each, and similar joys. But every couple has specific and unique areas that need attention. LifeWay's Festivals of Marriage enable you and your spouse to retreat to a place where you can focus on each other, your marriage, and your relationship to God. Each weekend offers:
*Time to concentrate on your marriage, away from jobs, kids, and the daily grind *Several "hot topic" workshops of interest to you and your spouse *Worship sessions with speakers, drama, and music
Plus, there are special events at 3-day Festivals of Marriage retreats, including Saturday afternoon date time and a Candlelight Renewal of Vows ceremony.
Visit the LIFEWAY website for more information on Fall Festival of Marriage and other events.
I am so very blessed. I'm married to the best husband & father a girl could ask for. Together we have four beautiful children: 3 gorgeous home-grown sons and our beautiful daughter adopted from Chenzhou, China (Hunan Province) in 2005. We are currently in the process of adopting our second daughter from Ethiopia and hope to have her home in 2009. Follow our journey!
