blessedtimes2

2009-01-14T04:47:00.000-08:00

Joey & Kristen-

Sorry it's taken me so long. Computer issues! These are just some samples I put up of that were not so traditional. Of course, the traditionals are included- for example wedding party, parents, grandparents and extended family. Feel free to contact me if you need. If you would like for me to photograph your wedding, I'd be honored. I would like to talk to you before then to get an idea of what you are looking for.

Take Care,

Amy

sample pictures from wedding/prewedding shoots

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New Pictures

2008-10-13T04:43:00.000-07:00

Okay so I have been hearing that I have been slacking on updates and pictures so here we go.

Molly is doing well, she's had an eye, ear, and throat infection but she is bouncing back quickly. Thankfully she is not very cross when she is sick- unlike her dramatic brother. She weighs close to 12 pounds! Lee is doing great in school. He seems to really like it too. We get report cards Friday- I can't wait! My sister in law- a former kindergarden teacher- is dying to read the comments... and I am too. He has been asked to join the Black Belt Club at his martial arts school. He is so loving that! Lee will be testing soon for his orange belt. He is the youngest at the school with this rank.

Enjoy the pictures.

6 weeks

2008-09-22T12:46:00.000-07:00

Miss Molly is now 6 weeks old. She is doing much better with eating. We go to the doctor tomorrow- I think she has an eye infection. She loves to be held and that's not a problem for anyone. My mom may have a different story once I go back to school.

Quick Update

2008-09-15T07:05:00.000-07:00

Molly is doing great. We had some very minor issues with her stomach. We changed her formula and added Cayro syrup along with gripe water to her bottles. That worked for awhile and her face filled out really fast from the syrup. After talking to the doctor we are now adding mineral oil to her bottles and so far so good. She is sleeping a little longer- 3 1/2 hours! Lee is so good with her. We have not seen any major behavior issues from him. He says sometimes he gets a little jealous but he says he can handle it. He is enjoying school. He has been invited to join the black belt club in Choi Kwang Do. It's a big honor and he is so excited!

Here's some pictures I took of Lee and Molly in their LSU attire.

Update on Molly

2008-08-19T12:43:00.000-07:00

She is an absolute dream! I am not getting much sleep but it doesn't matter because for so long this is what we prayed for! Molly is very content and easy going. She is eating every 3 hours and has gained 6 ounces. She is 2 weeks old today. Lee is adjusting fine. He is very gentle with her, her calls her his cutie pie. He makes sure he kisses her before he leaves for school and as soon as he comes home from school. He has said that at times he feels jealous, we expected that and we talked about it. Now, he thinks he's the 3rd parent, he's an awesome helper.

A Week of Milestones

2008-08-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

Not only do we have a new addition to our family, but also Lee has started Kindergarten. His first day was last Friday. Of course, I was sad to see my baby old enough to go to school. I am forced to realize he is growing up. I have dreaded this moment for months. We see the bus coming and I thought he may say something like "Mama, I am not ready" or "Can you bring me in the car" but no! He doesn't even look back as he enters the bus. Part of me was super proud of his independence and bravery, but another part of me wanted him to still depend on Mama. Other than him getting lost the first day because an adult wasn't at the bus to show the newcomers where to go, he loves it. His favorite part of the day is lunch. I think he thinks he is at a restaurant. I was surprised to hear how much he liked lunch because he's such a picky eater.

Anyway, here are some pictures of his first day.

Coming clean

2008-08-11T18:53:00.000-07:00

I know I have been secretive about what has been going on but I promise I had good reason. Many of you know we having been waiting 3 years to adopt a baby from China. There are many things going on with the Chinese program that has increased the wait times. While waiting, we were waiting we were presented with a possible domestic adoption. The birthparents are Asian. We had several factors we had to work out but as luck would have it- everything worked out in our favor. Yesterday we met our daughter for the first time. She has been home for a little over 24 hours and we are absolutely in love! She was born on August 5th. She weighed a little over 6 lbs and is 18 3/4 inches long. Lee has been an absolutely amazing big brother- let's all keep our fingers crossed that this continues.

For those of you who made this possible (and you know who you are) words cannot express our appreciation, without you we would never know this precious child who is now our daughter.

Lee Turns 5

2008-06-30T17:00:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had Lee's birthday party. Every year we have his party outside, and every year it's way too hot even if it's a water party. This year, Lee asked for an Elvis party. It all started when we saw a play last summer, All Shook Up, that evolved using Elvis songs to tell a story. Lee liked the play so much we saw it 3 times. I think it's a little odd for someone his age to like Elvis as much as he does- he knows all of the fast songs and can navigate my ipod to find them. I was worried that the other kids wouldn't understand since we had such a wide age range. I ended up planning a sock hop/soda/ fountain shop. We had hula hoops, played games, made snow balls, ice cream sundaes and coke or root beer floats. We had entertainment too. I had the 2 main characters from All Shook Up to come and dance. Lee was so shy and nervous- definitely not what I thought he would do. Natalie and Chad, from the play, sang Happy Birthday to Lee and then his favorite Elvis song- Burning Love. Hopefully, I will post pictures later.

Baby Rumors

2008-06-08T06:09:00.001-07:00

Word has it (thanks to Rumor Queen, our main source of info) that a package from China is on it's way via DHL. Some agencies are saying that this batch will be for families who are logged in until January 22. Considering the 2 and 3 day batches we've been having this a good batch! Of course this doesn't include us since our log in date is March 8th, but it is a step closer! Come on China-- bring on the babies!

I have been asked by several people if we are able to adopt children who have been abandoned by the earthquake. Terry and I quickly called the agency once we thought they would have the answer after hearing from their orphanages. The answer is no. They are hoping that the "orphans" that were new since the quake would be reunited with family or adopted by other Chinese families. Of course, I had a million questions about this since the one child policy is still in effect. I was given a bunch of jargon and answers that only created more questions but the long and short of it is --- no. It's always hard to hear that answer when we want nothing but to have a baby girl to love.

We were eating out yesterday for lunch and an adoptive family sat next to us. It's always an awkward position because we both want to ask questions but not offend anyone. The little girl was Asian and precious! Terry and I were surprised that we didn't recognize them since we are affiliated with the majority of adoptive families. Anyway, the little girl was born in Korea. She is 6 and to still my heart even more... deaf in one ear and partial hearing in the other ear. She was just too cute for words!

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Pictures from the Asian Heritage Festival

2008-05-07T17:04:00.001-07:00

Every year the New Orleans Zoo host the Pacific Asian Heritage Festival. There are informative booths of information and products. This year we were lucky enough to have someone offer to write all of our names in Chinese. They have some amazing performances as well that represent a variety of Asian cultures. Here are some pics from our outing. Excuse some of the "artsy" stuff I got a new lens and have started taking pictures on the side. I love it! More on that later.

Molly update

2008-05-05T05:40:00.000-07:00

It has taken me awhile to digest this information so that's why I haven't posted an update recently. In a nutshell here it goes- China has slowed down tremendously- even more than orignially thought. In the past month CCAA has only matched 6 days of LIDs. The current LID date is January 12, 2006. We are March 8, 2006. It sounds like we are getting close but at the rate of 6 days of matching in a month we are not as close as we thought we'd be at this time ( well- we also didn't think we'd still be waiting after 3 years). CCAA is talking about closing down for the Olympics... of course this would be another set back since the Olympics is the entire month of August. Not sure but I think there's a few Chinese holidays between now and then too. Ugh.

A lesson on birds

2008-04-30T16:05:00.000-07:00

Lee has been asking some really interesting questions. We always knew his mind worked overtime but as he gets older we are really having a hard time answering the questions in either a PC, objective or nonabrasive way.

Tonight on the way back from Choi Kwang Do he asked why birds sat on power lines. I told him I have no idea but we'd look into when we got home. And we did. It's a easy perch for landing and take off. The next question was why do they all face the same way and then why do they not get hurt. After explaining about electricity (okay I read it to him from http://how-come.net/category/animals/ it's a really neat website) his next question is why are our neighborhood lines underground. He says it wasn't very nice for the people not to give the birds a perch and maybe that's why we don't see many birds.

Church is another place that opens us up to a lot of questions like if we drink His blood every week how much blood can he have (easy enough to answer). After Jesus rose from the dead were his feet and hands broke from being nailed, why were people so ugly to Him and why are people still ugly to each other. All easy enough to answer unless you have to worry about what may come next... and we do.

beach pics

2008-04-03T05:17:00.000-07:00

Over the break we went to the beach. It was a much needed trip away from the somewhat black cloud that seems to be following us. Recently, we have learned that our adoption is going to be even longer than we expected. We are not sure of the cause for the drastic slow down but I assume the Olympics plays a part in it. We get many questions about why we do not leave the China program and go into a different program. All we can answer is that our hearts are in China and we have no doubts that China is where our baby girl is waiting for us. We are still keeping our fingers crossed that we will be matched by the end of the year-- it never hurts to think positive. Along with this I have been having some personal health issues, and have gotten some not so good news in that area. Anyway, didn't mean for this to be a downer post. Here are some pictures from our trip. Somehow, I seem to love looking through the camera lens and came away with entirely too many pictures. I can only imagine what I'll come home with after being in China for 2 weeks.

Molly Update

2008-03-06T11:00:00.001-08:00

We are so excited that the Chinese Consulate is finally matching families log in in January! They matched families with LIDs up to January 4th. Our LID is March 8th. So at least we are in the right year now! Simple things are making us excited now. I am trying not to get too excited though because they may take up to 6 months to do the rest of January or it may be a few weeks- only they know. Although this past weekend I went to buy Lee some new shorts and shirts for the spring and summer and I could not help but to pick up a few (okay a lot) of things for Molly. Of course I am guessing on size but at least now I have a better idea.

Lee is so anxious for Molly but worried about us being away for 2 weeks. He'll be staying with my mom, he'll get away with more there than we would ever care to know, but all the same he likes a routine and he likes Mama and Daddy lovin' (his words). He has many questions about how everything will work and right now we are just reassuring him that he will be safe and we will come home and love him as much as we always did. His reply was "Just get pregnant and then you wouldn't have to leave." That broke my heart.

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Friday Fill Ins

2008-02-22T09:06:00.000-08:00

My friend, Jill, is doing this on her blog so I thought I'd might try it out. It'll be a new thing since looking back all of the adoption news is so blah these days.

Here it goes.

Friday, February 22, 2008

friday fill-ins #60
1. Seeing new places and different ways of living are the best thing about traveling.
2. I love a good book and a warm blanket when I'm cold.
3. I often use paperclips to make me sneeze.
4. I'm reading Eat Pray Love right now; I am indifferent towards it but it's early yet.
5. My mom getting old is something I dislike talking about.
6. When I visit China I most looked forward to seeing my daughter- oops it's just never far from my mind.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to finally getting Lee a hair cut, tomorrow my plans include cleaning up our new addition and the new furniture and Sunday, I want to read and listen to my ipod!

Piegon Forge

2008-02-21T14:47:00.000-08:00

Over Mardi Gras break we went to Tennessee in search of snow. Lee has been wanting to see snow for awhile now. Last Christmas we went to New York in hopes of seeing snow. No luck, all though Mama did have a ball ice skaking in Central Park. Anyway- we did see snow in Gatlinburg. We went up, the weather was nasty that day but so worth it. We saw 2 music shows, Lee mined for "gems" (some people really believed they were going to strike it rich doing this). The guy did look like a real prospector. We went to several museums. Lee liked digging for dinosaur artifacts. We even played putt putt golf. Dionne, Lee and me made fools of ourselves in the wax museum. We thought we were being sly because no one saw us but later we realized I am sure they had cameras... oh well at least we don't live there.

We give Terry such a hard time when he finds places for us stay. He has picked some oh not so nice places. He did great with this 2 1/2 story cabin. It was pretty high and I am so very afraid of heights but the view was great. The bottom story was a game room, the second was our living area and bedrooms, porch and hot tub. They had a little loft where Lee was suppose to sleep but he didn't. Now Lee wants a hot tub. So kudos to Terry-- finally.

Adoption News- not so good

2008-01-10T07:40:00.000-08:00

I just called our agency because I had all sorts of questions. I must say that I am very proud of myself for not calling before now. Honestly, this is the first time I have called in the almost 3 years we've been waiting. What I found out is this:

. They are predicting CCAA will be closed the month of August due to the Olympics. She was did point out that there has been no official word of that from China.

Our LID is March 8 06. She is predicting a fall or winter referral. Needless to say we were hoping for much sooner than that...

And as far Chinese New Year they are guessing CCAA will be closed from about the 6th-18th of February or 8-10 days. No official word on that either.

Soooo long story short I didn't hear anything I was hoping for. Please keep us and Molly in your thoughts and prayers. Hopefully they will be whispered in the ear of someone in China and we could finally be the family of 4 that we have been waiting on for so long.

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Oops- here are the pics from our adoption group's xmas party

2008-01-05T16:04:00.001-08:00

Christmas Party

2007-12-11T09:26:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday we went to our friends, the Webbs', for a Christmas party with other families who have adopted from Korea and China. We (Lori and I) decided that the big party through the agency wasn't fun so we decided to invite the families we liked or have things in common with for a smaller, more relaxed party. I guess that doesn't sound so good but that's the truth of it. The kids pulled names and exchanged gifts. We don't see these families as much as the kids get older but it is always fun to see how everyone has grown and discuss adoption issues we encounter.

Oh-- I can't believe I forgot this! Lori and I were taught how to make egg rolls, sushi and dumplings by some Korean ladies from church. We had a great time and I really think I can do the sushi!!

I'll post pictures tonight.

Say It Aint So!!!!

2007-11-27T12:31:00.000-08:00

Is Britney Spears really adopting twin girls from China??? It cannot be. China has gotten really strict with the requirements and needless to say Britney doesn't meet them. This is only a rumor and I need to remind myself of that before I totally loose my cool. BUT if she does get her girls home before Christmas like reports are saying all I will take from this is that money does talk! UUUGGGHHHH! I'm just too whatever to even write about it so here's an article... please tell me it's just a rumor.

Britney Spears Plans to Adopt 6-Year-Old Twins from China
November 27, 2007
In news you should take with a grain of salt (and I mean the tiniest, most microscopic grain of salt imaginable) the British tabloid News of the World reports that Britney Spears plans to adopt twin girls from China.
Given Britney's eccentric history (to put it mildly) she is one of the very last people on earth I would trust to take care of a child. Why would anybody in their right mind give her permission to adopt when the court has even taken away her own children?
Fortunately, even if this story proves to be completely false (which wouldn't surprise me) there is a substantial difference between planning to adopt, and being granted permission to adopt. Since 1992, China has been the land of opportunity for potential adoptees, but last May, it increased requirements for adoptive parents.
Some of the attributes that would disqualify you for adoption from China include obesity, singleness, and uncertain financial, physical or mental health. While Britney's definitely not poor or obese, I don't think I'd necessarily classify her as someone who is of "sound mental or emotional health."
But even though the regulations might brilliantly weed out candidates for adoption like Britney Spears, not everyone is pleased by China's stricter adoption policy. Many potential adoptive parents have been turned down, and the number of overseas adoptions has dropped.
Those on the wait list for a child from China understandably aren't too thrilled with the stricter standards, but some of the reasons for these new attitudes indicate positive changes withiin China. For instance, fewer babies are being abandoned, and the stigma against having girls isn't as pronounced as it once was.
According to unofficial reports, a record number of Chinese are adopting. A recent USA Today article attributes the increase of domestic adoptions to growing affluence within China, changing social attitudes towards adopted children, and empty nesters who were only allowed to have one child, but now have another chance to have more children.
The cost and paperwork for Chinese citizens wanting to adopt is substantially less intense than it would be for foreigners, which might also fuel the current trend. Some Chinese also believe that keeping Chinese-born children in China helps to establish a stronger sense of identity.
While this trend might result in disappointment for many foreign couples wanting to adopt from China, the fact that there are fewer abandoned babies with more Chinese families able to take care of them is a positive development for the country.

Molly update

2007-11-05T12:25:00.000-08:00

Our agency finally updated their website. The Chinese side of the agency has been on vacation for over a week for Children's Week. They have placed babies with families with Log in dates through December 8th. Our log in date is March 8th. I know we are getting closer, I feel it and my mom does too. She said that Friday she couldn't get Molly out of her mind... funny how we can feel so attached to someone who may or may not be born. I know this will sound strange but I have been seeing and hearing "signs" all weekend. In China a symbol for good luck is the ladybug. They have been everywhere. We had a video made of Lee's first year home and on the movie we had songs that were very close to our hearts, today I heard 2 of them- one in the van when we were driving my students to shop and the other in the store. Signs of good things to come--- I hope. I want my baby girl!!!!
Here's the 2 songs incase anyone is curious.
http://www.starpulse.com/Music/Evans,_Sara/Videos/445243/
http://www.starpulse.com/Music/Henley,_Don/Videos/519187/

Halloween Pics

2007-10-28T16:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures I took of Lee in his Halloween costume. He was torn
between Elvis and a mailcarrier. Once he saw the Elvis wig he was over Elvis.

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Quick Adoption Update

2007-09-27T06:20:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone! Sorry I have been out of touch for awhile. I am taking a class at night and between taht and school time is scarce. Anyway, we heard from our agency. Things are still moving slow. They are still working on November Log In Dates. We are March. Lately they have only been getting a few days worth done in a matter of a month. Let's hope things will speed up because at this rate the wait doesn't look so good. Terry is confident that we will be matched in March and travel around May. I am not so sure. I guess I am trying to protect my heart from breaking any more with this crazy wait. Anyway, here's a video clip I found about the orphanage situation in China. It broke my heart. http://youtube.com/watch?v=jGEPjFfP5TQ

preschool and high school

2007-09-06T04:50:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I have posted. We have been super busy with school starting. Lee has started preschool- sadness! I cannot believe he's old enough for preschool, wasn't it only yesterday he came home? Since he's been home I have been told over and over to enjoy those days because time goes by so fast. I have always kept this in the back of my mind and I have made extra efforts to make memories for us but I still can't help but to wonder where the time has gone and why has it gone by so fast. To torture myself I have been watching video from when he was younger- double sadness! Next year he will be going to kindergarten so I can only imagine my state of mind then. YIKES!

As for as me, I am loving the move to high school. I love having my boys back, and a few new kiddies too. It's a whole different world even though it's only across the street. I am amazed (and a little freaked) at the freedom and choices the kids have here. My classroom is super, much better than the trailer that was 1/2 way in the ditch that I had my first few years.

I'll try to post pictures of Lee's first day at preschool soon.

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My baby is focused!

2007-08-08T16:32:00.000-07:00

I am just now going through some of the pictures from Lee's first tee-ball experience. He had fun and so did Terry. I did have to remind Terry several times that these were babies and not major leaguers. I'll be posting more ball pictures but I had to post this one first because it was so typical - the kids were oblivious!

Nathan keeps giving me a hard time because we had a coaching problem-he quit coming. So when other parents were taking over and doing a not so great job I encouraged Terry to take control. Once he did I thought this meant I could tell Terry what to do... I still don't understand what is so different about home and the ball field. Anyway- there were these 2 girls and Lee's team. They were brutes! They were getting every ball and the others were not getting a chance. Soooo I called Terry on his cell phone (he's on the field and I am on the sideline) to tell him to hold those girls back so my baby (and the others) could have a chance to get the ball. Incase you're wondering, he did.

Choi Kwang Do

2007-08-08T16:25:00.000-07:00

Lee got a trophy tonight at Choi Kwang Do. If the kids make 8 classes a month they get a perfect attendance award and trophy. He really thinks he's big stuff now! Here's a picture of him showing off his treasure.

I would love some cheese with my whine

2007-08-05T06:37:00.000-07:00

WHERE OH WHERE HAS THE SUMMER GONE!! I have orentation tomorrow for my new school. I am excited about going to the high school- especially excited about have some of my old guys back. BUT I would not turn down a few more days of summer. Teachers and staff officially start this Thursday and the kids come on Monday. Even though I have been in my new classroom almost everyday for the past month it's not the same. I knew I could go and come on my own terms, and those of you who know me know I like to do things on my own terms.

On a positive note- the principal has been super nice to me, even including me in on the process of hiring someone to be the para in my room. Yeah you heard me- as of now I don't have an aide with 5 kids (2 diapers and other medical issues). Oops- I said on a positive note didn't I?

PHEW!

2007-07-25T18:57:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all of the positive thoughts. They worked!! CCAI called and all is well. Terry found out that our dossier (the mother load of paperwork we sent in) has made it through the critical review room and now we are in the matching room. I posted pictures of this before. It's really interesting. There are rows of dossiers waiting to be matched to a baby. This doesn't mean that we are anywhere close to being matched. A few weeks ago CCAI told us it would likely be December before we were matched. We were over the moon at that point. Today they told Terry is would be more like March. At this point what's a few more months? We're just glad our baby girl is in China!

I've heard from several people that blogger was not letting people post comments. I think I fixed it. So please try to leave a message and let's see what happens.

Thanks again for thinking of us, we appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers!

Keep your fingers crossed!

2007-07-24T18:13:00.001-07:00

I'm hesitant to post this - but I don't think there are many readers out there so I'll do it. What the hell!

I'm very scared. Our Baton Rouge social worker called us today while we were getting re-fingerprinted for Molly's adoption. Since we have been waiting for over 2 years our prints have expired. So we went to Homeland Secuity in New Orleans and then out to lunch to celebrate another step in this crazy process. At this point we celebrate anything that makes us feel closer to our daughter. Anyway, while we were eating Barbara (our social worker) called and voiced concern about our being in the process. She is wondering if we are even in the program! WHAT??? She says China seems to be kicking people out! I am so heartbroken- but trying to remain hopeful. What in the world will we do if this is true? At this point our heart is in China because our agency (in Colorado) says we should be matched around December. This would mean our baby girl is born now and that just brings in a whole new level of emotion.

So, what I am asking is for positive thoughts to be sent our way. Terry has a call into our agency (CCAI). Hopefully once we hear from them they can ease our minds and hearts. My baby girl has to be out there! Her room and our family are ready for her!

On a positive note- we ate at PF Changs- our absolute favorite place and at the exact same table we ate at the day we waited for Lee's arrival. Silly me couldn't believe we were hearing this kind of news at a place that has followed with so much joy. BUT I left feeling better because my fortune cookie said "The one you love is closer than you think." God- I hope so!

Link to Pictures from Houston

2007-07-12T18:24:00.000-07:00

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=11y8d1f2.1t2h3bxy&Uy=fxu4td&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1

Hope this works.

A little get away...

2007-07-12T18:05:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have not posted in awhile. I had a rough week last week. Not too sure how many people actually read this thing so I'll let it all out. During my yearly check up to the OB/GYN I found out that my uterus is tilted and dropping... lovely right? Luckily, I do not have any desire to become pregnant because on top of my other female issues this would definitely complicate things. With this same visit I pointed out a lump on my inner thigh that has been there for some time, the dr. tested it and it is a tumor- not serious though but it needs to be taken out. THANK YOU JESUS! On top of this there's a lump on my breast. Terry, being the good man he is, came with me today to get this checked out. It is just a cyst, nothing threatening. We were so happy to hear this. I have been so worried and I know Terry has been too. He has been so supportive and uplifting. He has done research and throughout the week he has kept me positive always looking on the bright side of things.

Our friends, the Webbs, asked us to join them for a little get away to her brother's house in Houston. We met the Webbs through our adoption group. They have 3 children- all born in Korea. Lee and Tae-Woo are big buddies and I am so in love with Neena and Jung Wook! We had so much fun. Their neighboorhood has 8000 houses in it and awesome parks and water parks. We went to the boardwalk in Kehma and Korea Town. I had my first taste of kimichi and I liked it. Those of you who know me, will not be surprised that I like fermented, picked cabbage. The boys and men went to a pro baseball game and golfing. Lori and I were able so sneak in some shopping in Korea Town (I had my fix of Korean cookies) and in Kemah. A good time was had by all. Lori- thank you so much for the get away- it could not have come at a better time. Entertaining 4 kids (6 counting Terry and J.J) was a great way to keep my mind off of other things!

Pictures to come.

Tear jerker

2007-06-26T18:30:00.000-07:00

Today was a hard day in some ways and a great day in other ways. Dionne and I took Lee to the aquarium in New Orleans for his birthday. Usually I take Lee to church to light a candle for his birthmother, but we left too early. Instead we made a wish for her in the fountains. Lee was so sweet, he closed his hands like he was praying and closed his eyes really tight. He said "I hope you aren't sad because we love you and we want you to feel better". It was so sweet to hear him be so sincere. I was telling Dionne how heavy my heart is today because I kept wondering how she was feeling today. She was never far from my mind.

Anyway, I hope I don't offend anyone but I wanted to share this touching song. Terry and I listened to it together and it brought a lot of old feelings back before we chose to create a family through the miracle of adoption.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqfGqOx2iDQ

She's gonna kill me but...

2007-06-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

I just could not resist posting these pictures of my mom on her- oh I mean Lee's new Slip N Slide. I could not believe she did it, these kids thought she had lost her mind and I have not laughed so hard in a long long time!

Oh and here's one of my favorite pictures of Lee at swimming lessons. Gotta love the goggles. More to come on swimming lessons.

2007-06-21T05:44:00.000-07:00

Opps Father's Day

2007-06-21T05:41:00.000-07:00

For some reason I thought I had already posted pictures of Father's Day. Anywho- we took Terry to Cajun Village for breakfast. Of course we ended up spending all morning there. Lee had a great time exploring and I enjoyed shopping (as always). I think I finally have all of our gifts bought for China. I was sweating this because we have to be careful that nothing we bring is made in China.

Here are a few pictures from Sunday. We were not able to see the alligator, maybe next time. Lee said since it was Sunday they must be at alligator church.

Where Has The Time Gone?

2007-06-19T08:20:00.000-07:00

For some reason I find Lee's birthday much more emotional than his Gotcha Day. On his birthday I cannot seem to stop thinking of his birthmother and how she is feeling on this day. I wonder if she wonders about me as much as I wonder about her, if she wonders how much Lee is exposed to the Korean culture or if her heart is as heavy as mine on this day. Of course I am grateful for the sacrifice she made for Lee, herself and for us. I have never doubted her love for Lee. I know she must have had many sleepless nights and endless tears then and now. We continue to pray that she finds comfort in her decision and we pray that she knows her and our son is well loved and we will be forever grateful to her for such a precious gift.

On top of Lee's birthday, I have realized just how much he is growing up. It's very sad for me. Monday we started swimming lessons and he was great! After swimming, another mom and I went to look at preschools for her daughter and Lee- another reminder. Then, we get word that it's time to move Lee to the next class in Choi Kwang Do because of his belt ranking- reminder again. Next, we find out that today he has his first t-ball practice- yikes! My baby is going to be in uniform complete with a cute little ball cap and cleats (thanks Uncle Nacy and Aunt Amy for the shoes).

I have talked to a few friends of mine who have sons close to Lee's age. I think it's safe to say we are all questioning when did our babies go from babies to toddlers to preschoolers? Our boys cannot be 4 all ready when the emotions from their homecoming are still so raw. Just where has all the time gone?

Swimming Lessons

2007-06-19T05:54:00.000-07:00

We started swimming lesson yesterday. I was really nervous because Lee is not
comfortable in the water especially with geting his face wet. The swimming instructor is a friend of mine
from school. She is a special ed. teacher too. She was awesome with Lee, she took her time to assure him
that he was safe with her and she built up his trust slowly. I was afraid he would hang on me and not be
willing to go with her, not the case! I was so proud of him!! Here are a few pictures from the first day. I
was the only parent out there with a camera so I felt kinda silly moving around for the best shots so please
excuse the ladder. Of couse I sat down before thinking and before I realized all of the good seats were taken.
I'll do better today!

Birthday Pictures

2007-06-17T18:49:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick collage of pictures from Lee's 4th birthday party. Thanks Janel for the great site for organizing and editing pictures. You were so right- I do love it!

Lee's 4th Birthday Party

2007-06-16T16:52:00.001-07:00

We had Lee's birthday party today. His actual b-day is June 26th so more fun is to come! We had his party at the Lollipop Tree. It's an adorable store full of educational toys and books. It's our absolute favorite store. Lee and I have gone there every week for story time this summer- sometimes 2 times a week! It is such a quaint place... sort of like Meg Ryan's bookstore on You've Got Mail. Anyway, Lee had a great time! Just remind me next year to plan something inside! Every year we have an outdoor party and every year I swear I won't do it again. This time I will have to stick to it! Thanks everyone for coming, we were glad to have you share in Lee's special day!

Bad language and bad parenting

2007-06-13T16:50:00.000-07:00

So- yesterday I took Lee and Emily for a fun filled day starting with story time and ending with a play by the Playmakers. We had a really fun time (even though they argue like brother and sister about any and everything). At one point Emily was explaining to Lee why she's starting physical therapy for a broken finger. She was so sincere about the whole deal. Lee was furious because she wasn't listening to his reasons (as he claims) for not going to therapy because we would all be sad if she were to hurt the finger more. I let it go on because I thought it was sweet and I thought learning how to agree to disagree was a good lesson for Lee to learn but after 15 minutes I had had enough from these 2 strong willed kids. It was obvious neither were going to let the issue rest but none the less it was nice to see the sweet compassionate side of Lee that peeks out from time to time.

Anyway, that was not the reason for this post so here it goes. After a fun day Lee still had not had enough of Emily. So she came to Choi Kwang Do and then out to eat with us. No major events there other than Lee turning to Emily several times during class to make sure she was watching and he gave her a wink and thumbs up. Emily (she'll be in 1st grade) turns to me and says "It's obvious he likes me". My mom rode with us to eat and drop of Emily. She (mom) has a strong dislike for Tracy Chapman - not sure why. It has become a big joke with us because a certain song comes on often and if she isn't with me I call and "share" it with her. As soon as she heard it, she said "Turn that off" to which Lee replied "Yeah, turn that stupid shit off". I know where he's heard sh*& but stupid is a word we do not use. Okay, I tried to be the big parent and correct his potty mouth while my mom laughed so hard she thought she had peed in her pants and Terry nearly drove us in the bayou because he was laughing so hard. While I was trying to end the episode, Lee says "Come on Mom you know you wanna laugh". I couldn't help it and I did join in. I know may not have been the most appropriate thing to do but I did try-- I swear I did!

More Squares!

2007-06-11T17:54:00.000-07:00

If some of these are repeats I am sorry. I want to make sure I've shared everyone's square. I guess I could have gone back and checked- but oh well. We are getting more squares in. We are hoping we will have everyone's squares by mid-July so that Mrs. Martha can start putting the quilt together. I cannot wait! We have gotten great pieces and some very meaningful pieces and wishes. I know some people are more nervous about the wish than the material. Please don't be. It can be as silly or as simple as you'd like. It can be as profound or as long as you'd like. Thanks everyone for participating! It means so much to us!

Trent's Birthday

2007-06-08T06:26:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from

Trent's first birthday- over a month ago.

Better late than never right?

Agency Update

2007-06-06T17:44:00.001-07:00

Here's the Wednesday update from CCAI.

6/6/2007Match News

We are happy to announce that we received matches for our May, 2006 expedited Chinese Descent families! These families will be contacted with their match information tomorrow! It appears the CCAA matched up through November 7, 2005. As our next Log in Date is November 8, 2005, we are disappointed to have not received any Traditional Program matches in this group. We do not have any news on the next group of matches at this time. We will update this site when more information becomes available.

This is what it means for us- we are a little closer even though CCAI didn't have any referrals for the traditional program. All this means is that they didn't have any traditional families (not of Chinese descent) in this time frame. Of course it would be nice if CCAA decided to really make a lot of families happy and send a large batch of referrals but that remains to be seen.

Throughout all of this, Terry and I refuse to let ourselves get too down in the dumps because we know that a baby girl is waiting for us and it will happen. The wait for our daughter has been much longer than the wait for Lee but having Lee has definitely softened the heartache of wanting our daughter home. Our hearts go out to the families waiting on their first child... that is a pain we will not forget.

Comments and 2 squares

2007-06-04T18:36:00.000-07:00

Thanks everyone for the emails about Molly's name. I think I changed the setting so that you can leave a comment on the blog without a member but maybe not. I am keeping my fingers crossed though.

We are trying to wind down with the squares so we can get them to the lady who will be piecing them together. I'd like to have all of the squares by mid-July. Of course if we have other squares come in we'll be sure to send them to her. We want to make sure everyone is included!

This is from someone I met on line through a China adoption message board. Click on the picture to read her message- I love it!!

This is from Josette in New Jersey. Her card says- Invest your life in a child and the return will be eternal.

Molly's room

2007-06-01T14:16:00.001-07:00

I couldn't figure out how to rotate pictures- I was so excited that blogger is finally loading the pictures that I didn't want to take any chances. I swear she has more books now. I hit the motherload of sales after Chinese New Year. Dionne and my mom made the panda for her at Adopt A Bear. They are still bitter we aren't going with the name Lucy so they named the bear Lucy. I love the name but I got tired of hearing so many people refering to the name of some beloved pet.

I really don't think the walls are as pink as they look in the picture. The quilt was made by a lady raising money for her trip to Ethopia to adopt a 7 year old girl.

These are the only two things we have left to hang. The letters are made out of vintage wallpaper.

This is an old dresser from my Nanny. It fits perfect and is already loaded with stuff!!

Okay- here are the pictures of Molly's room. We have 2 things left to hang. Not sure why we haven't done it but whatever. For some reason I am not 100% certain I love the name Molly but as you can see I have some things monogramed and even more in the drawers but that can all be fixed with some shopping. What do you think- should we keep Molly or go with another name? Lee's vote is still for Allergy- I have no idea where he comes up with some of these things but he has said that for awhile.

Agency Update

2007-05-31T12:28:00.001-07:00

Every Wednesday our agency updates their website for waiting families. Needless to say I check it like crazy on Wednesday! All they are saying (for the past few weeks) is that they believe the CCAA (Chinese Consulant of Adoption Affairs) are working on the next group of matches. They are not sure what log in dates (the date the CCAA enters families into their system) this involves. It's not ours for sure. Last we heard they had just finished October and we are March. BUT- on a good note Terry contacted the agency last week and they told him that we should expect a referral in January. Let's all keep our fingers crossed and pray really hard. We are so ready for our baby girl!

Not that it matters, but the immigration office is waiving (one time only) the fee for an extension on paperwork. Since we were with Korea for awhile and now with China a little over a year our paperwork has expired- all of it. We have to do it all over even the police clearance. Of course this all involves more fees. We are hoping we can take advantage of the immigration waiver, especially since their fees are going up next month.

Blogger still isn't letting me post pictures- ughh. I have some pictures of Molly's room. It's almost done. But until then I thought this was kinda funny.

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=392011&cache=1

Ahhhh

2007-05-30T05:19:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been awhile since I've updated the blog. Now that school is finally out I hope I will have more time- that is if Mr. Lee doesn't keep me on the road. He has a few things lined up for the summer like t-ball, a musical and of course Choi Kwang Do.

I wanted to post a few pictures of blogger isn't being very cooperative. I'll try again later.

2007-05-21T18:08:00.000-07:00

This is from Shelley and Dave from Northport New York.

We wish you-

warm sunshine

cool breezes

smooth sailihng and

teddy bear hugs always!

This square is from Beth and Haus in Wisconsin. They have a child who was born in China. They are now waiting for a little girl from China.

Love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.

Antoine de Saint- Exepery

Here's to the love of a family made by gazing outward.

I love this wish because it's so true for our family.

This square is from Isabelle and Stephan

from Quebec Canada. We may travel together since their LID (log in date- the date China enters your info into their system) are so close.

The future belongs to those who belive in the beauty of their dreams.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Ethan's Squares

2007-05-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

Here are the squares our neighbors gave us for Molly's quilt. Their family has been blessed by adoption too- they now have a precious son named Ethan.

I love this material and the wishes are absolutely priceless! Click on the pictures to read the wishes.

HAPPY FIRST MOTHER'S DAY JENNIFER!

Lee's 1st Bar Experience

2007-05-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

I know what you are thinking-- this is bad parenting and it may be but let me explain. We were staying in Bunkie for a family wedding. We were at a pretty neat old hotel (built in 1907).

Before the wedding we decided to stop by the hotel "lounge" to partake in an adult drink (or 2). The plan was for Terry to take Lee to play on the porch but the bartender told them it was okay for them to come in- I guess that's okay in Bunkie. We were the only people in there- it was around 5:00. Lee thought he was big stuff. He sat right down and asked for a Shirley Temple. Don't worry we didn't stay long. My biggest reason for posting this was to share probably the funniest adoption comment we have ever gotten. The bartender asked who were Lee's parents. We told her we were, she looked confused and asked where did he get his eyes. Without thinking (thanks to some great red wine) I said Korea. She was really confused until we clarified he was adopted. I still think we left her pretty confused.

Squares

2007-05-03T18:25:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more squares. I haven't counted all I have but I do love checking the mail for new ones!

This square is from the Boyd family in Washington. Their wish- May your child find peace in their adoption, love in your family, joy and mystery in their heritage and their place in the world.

What an awesome wish! We hope they will find peace in waiting for their baby girl.

I love this square from the Manielins. They are waiting to be matched with a daughter waiting for them in China. This material says hello in different laungages.

Their wish- Learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow.

We wish you all the joy that you can wish From the DiPaolo family in Los Angeles. In the Chinese culture ladybugs are a symbol for luck. For those of us on this roller coaster for China adoptions are counting on every ladybug to bring our babies home soon!

This square is from my mom. It is a piece of my grandpa's sweatshirt that he constantly wore before he died (in JULY). Wearing this shirt was so not like him because he loved dressing up. He did manage to tuck this sweatshirt in and when we'd try to talk him into untucking he'd get mad and tell us we didn't know what was in style.

My mom's wish -

One wish I have for you is laughter. This piece of sweatshirt represents laughter. Your great grandfather "Lil Pa Pa" has given this family plenty of reasons to laugh.

This is from Emma is Stockholm Sweden. Her LID is 3-24-06. It may be possible for us to travel together to China.

Her wish You never wait too long, when you wait for something good".

I have read this many, many times and find

comfort in her wish.

Here's a card from the Gaudiosi in New York. Ladybugs, lady bugs, ladybugs!! Their wish for Molly is

May you always fly gracefully and land in a world of love.

Adoption Update

2007-05-01T11:35:00.000-07:00

Our agency updated their site. They usually do this on Wednesdays so Tuesday was a nice surprise. CCAA (Chinese Consulate of Adoption Affairs) has been taking a month to match 1/2 of a month of babies to their families. Lately they have gotten slower than that. The last batch of matches was only for 2-3 days of October. Today they posted that they are through with the families until November 1, 2005. We have heard several reasons why the wait has gotten so long. Some of the reasons are just too hard to wrap my brain around. One thing they told us was that the orphanages from different villages have built these huge facilities and once children are placed with families and there may not be enough children to keep these facilities open -too many jobs would be lost. We heard that many orphanages were placing babies on the black market because they were able to make more money (how sad is that?) and they do not have to be accountable for the number of babies on the market. The CCAA has changed the guidelines for families trying to adopt. These rules took affect today. So, the CCAA has been trying to rush these families through. We are keeping our fingers crossed that things start speeding up. Our LID (log in date- the date the CCAA enters you into their system) is March 8, 2006. We still have 5 months until our LID is up to be matched with a baby in the Matching Room. We have been waiting with this agency for a 13 months, and before that we were in the Korean program for a year. The wait is starting to get hard, so I am really working on getting the quilt for Molly together. I have felt so closed off to China, I am sure it's to subconsciously protect my heart. I hope the quilt will help me feel closer to China and to give our little girl something to treasure.

These are the dossiers waiting to be matched. Our dossier is waiting somewhere like this.

This is how the matching room looks.

Belt Testing

2007-04-29T15:59:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share some pictures of Lee's latest Choi Kwang Do belt tests. He is now a green stripe. I think the next test will be hard for him because he says green is his favorite color and he doesn't want to change belts. Well at least we have a month to wait out the battle of wills...

Death in our family

2007-04-27T08:08:00.000-07:00

We knew this day was coming. One of Lee's goldfish died yesterday. We noticed the fish was starting to move slowly, and had brown spots all over. He refers to the fish as his children. Their names are Tommy, Susie and Ester. I kid you not, he came up with those off the wall names on his own. Anyway, Susie passed away and it was very upsetting for Lee. We put the fish on a paper towel in the bathroom. Lee pet the fish as we said a prayer. I really didn't know what to do with Susie. Terry thought we should throw it (her) away, I thought we should flush her. In the end she is swimming somewhere, Lee says she is happy now because the water is better in fishy heaven.

Even more squares

2007-04-25T17:43:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more for Molly's quilt. I hope I am not boring you but I really want everyone to see the process. I am so excited about this project. We have waited for our referral so long that I have started to feel "unattached" to the whole process, and that makes me sad. I remember being so obsessed during the wait for Lee it consumed me. Now that he is here I don't want him to suffer through it as I was so miserable. I want him to remain happy and excited as we wait for his baby sister. This project has given me something material (literally) to feel more attached to Molly. Anyway, here are the squares. If the writing is facing up click the picture if you want to read the wish.

This is from a friend in Texas. She is waiting on a daughter from China too. I love this material!!

This square is from Emma and Dan in Stockholm Sweden. She is so awesome! Her log in date is a little after ours but we are still keeping our fingers crossed that we can meet up in China. Her wish is You never wait too long, when you wait for something good. Isn't that the truth, and a testiment to adoption.

This square is from Jennie in Los Angeles. We met on-line on a China adoption forum. The Chinese view ladybugs as a good luck symbol.

Squares

2007-04-24T18:09:00.000-07:00

Here are some more of the squares we have gotten. If you want to read the message, click on the picture and a new window will open with an enlarged picture. If you rather I'd not post your message please let me know. I don't want to offend anyone or make anyone feel uncomfortable.

These 2 are from my mom. Obviously the are very special to me!

This is from someone I met through an adoption group. There log in date (the date that the Consulate in China enters you into their system and they wait begins) is 3/3/06. Our LID is 3/8/06. There is a very good chance we will be traveling to China together. This group is an amazing group of ladies who all understand how difficult the wait can get so we decided to do these quilts together. Anyway, the back of her card reads

"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand." Mother Teresa

Our wish is that you always have an overabundance of love so that you can share it with the world around you.

Welcome Home J.C.

2007-04-23T17:00:00.000-07:00

Our good friends, Lori and J.J. and their children Tae-Woo and Neena, welcomed home a son born in Korea. We were lucky enough to be invited to the airport for his arrival. Here are some pictures from the airport. It was a very emotional homecoming in so many ways. We are so happy for our friends and of course we wish them all of the happiness a family can endure. US Senator Mary Landrieu happened to be getting off of a plane. As a big supporter of adoption she was more than happy to pose for pics. In fact it was her idea!

Here they are on their way to meet J.C. for the first time!

Ugghhh- the wait was hard for family and friends but those few minutes they had alone with J.C. were so important.

Everyone was constantly checking the screens waiting for a flight update. Luckily, the flight was on time.

The plane... as passengers would come down the concourse they'd comment on how they had held him or how good he was while flying.

Here they are- a family of 5!

From Big Brother Tae-Woo

From Big Sister Neena (sorry about the color)

This is how Tae-Woo and Lee passed the time. They can always find something to keep them busy.

Members of the church welcome J.C. The pastor said a very touching prayer.

Lee resorts to reading the stocks.

A few more squares

2007-04-22T18:25:00.000-07:00

This is from my mom. She gave me 4 squares. All of the material is very special to her and now to me too. This was from a gown my grandmother gave her. I think you can read the card. If not click on it.

"Let us see with your eyes, O Lord, that we may
see the beauty and the possibility of every

child. "

He has given you those eyes, Amy and Terry. May he continue to bless you as you open your loving arms to these very special and beautiful children.

This is from my friend from school. Lee calls her "Bek his farm friend". She has a soft spot for animals and has the farm to prove it! Lee had his second birthday at her farm. This year he insist he is having his pirate party on Bek's farm. That should be interesting. Becky is an awesome person. She is one of the most sincere people I know and has the biggest heart especially for children with special needs.

This is from Lorraine and Matt in Tampa Florida. Her wish is An Irish Blessing.
May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours.

100 Good Wish Squares

2007-04-22T17:22:00.000-07:00

The letters are sent, and the squares are starting to roll in. I cannot wait to check the mail in the evening to see if we have any squares. I promised I would share the squares as they come so here are a few. Thanks everyone for sending them and please, please keep them coming! I will be updating our blog later with more squares so be sure to check back in.

This square is from a friend from an adoption message board also adopting from China. She is from Oregon.

Her wish- "Wishing you always love to surround you, warm memories to cheer you, good fortune to walk beside you, and happiness to fill your heart." Anonymous

I love this material! It is from Terri in Arizona. Her log in date is March 27, 2006. Our log in date is March 8, 2006. We may just meet in China!

This square is from Carlisle Pennsylvania. Dawn is a member of the Marching Pandas message board too.

Her wish is a Chinese proverb. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

What is so awesome about these ladies on this board is that there is a chance that we will all be traveling to China together to meet our girls!

Material Purse

2007-04-18T18:20:00.000-07:00

I consider myself somewhat crafty. Lee has been craft shopping with me many times and it is not uncommon for the 2 of us to take on projects from time to time. I have been working on cutting quilt squares for some friends working on 100 Good Wish quilts. Lee loves to get down on the floor with me to measure, and cut the material. Of course, he has material of his on. Anyway, he sat patiently for a very long time creating this treasure just for me. He did it entirely on his own. He calls it my "material purse". When we go somewhere he asks to make sure I have it. He taped together different compartments and tells me where everything goes. It even has a hole cut out for the handle. I think I have him convinced it is just too special to use. H

100 Wish Quilt

2007-04-17T11:39:00.000-07:00

Dear Family and Friends,

As many of you are aware. Terry and I began the process some time ago to adopt a baby from China. I recently ran across the tradition of the "Bai Jia Bei" or "100 Good Wishes Quilt". To welcome and celebrate a new life, there is a tradition in some parts of Northern China to make a Bai Jia Bei. When a baby was born, family and friends would donate to the child's mother fabric scraps from old clothing with a wish for the baby. She would make a quilt for the child from the scraps. It is said that the luck, energy, and good wishes from all of the families and friends who contributed the fabric surrounds the child when she is wrapped in the quilt. The quilt is then passed down from generation to generation.

There are so many good reasons to make this quilt for our little one, tradition being one of them. We are hoping to find many ways to keep our child connected to the Chinese culture. Another great reason is that our child will someday be able to see how much he or she was wanted and thought about even before coming into our family. We hope this quilt will remain part of our family for decades to come.

I am hoping you will be able to participate in our goal to make a Bai Jei Bei. If possible, please send us a piece of fabric at least 7"x7" also cut a scrap piece of the same material and on a separate piece of paper add your good wish with your name on it and the scrap piece of material. We are asking the scrap to match the square so that we all will be able to match the swatch to the square and read the wish from this person. Most quilts are made with 1--% cotton fabrics, so please make sure you the 100% cotton- we want to use every square. I am hoping you will be able to find a piece of fabric in your craft supplies, old decorating projects, or among old clothes or material that may be meaningful to you. If possible, please wash and iron the fabric before cutting it to be sure the size is true. If you are not sure what print to buy, don't worry. We know this quilt will be unique in that the color scheme will vary, and the prints will vary. When choosing a print look for something that you like or that reminds you of your family, our family, or a childhood memory. Be as creative as you'd like.

**Tip- if you have no idea how to work with fabric, ask for assistance at a fabric store and show them this letter. They will probably cut it for you. Include your good wish note and attach the scrap piece of fabric.

Collecting 100 squares may be a challenge. If there are several members in your family, please feel free to send more than one square. It would be so special to include good wishes from all members of your family!! Don't forget to add your good wishes for each square. Or you could choose a special quote. Some good wish examples (silly is okay):

May you have an abundance of hugs and kisses.
May you pass your driver's test on the first try.
May your daddy always watch out after you.

The good wishes will be incorporated either into the quilt or into a special Bai Jia Bei scrapbook. I will happily share pictures of the squares on this blog. Please feel free to add wishes for her as she grows older too.

Please take a few minutes from your busy schedules to help us create this very special keepsake for our daughter. This quilt will be something we will treasure and she will too. Please email me at kilgore@aspb.org if you have any questions.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and your wishes for our little one. As of now, it doesn't look like we will be traveling before this winter to meet our baby. Hopefully things in China will start speeding up again. The loving thoughts and good wishes from family and friends are powerful tools that will support us in the coming year. Thank you for your good wishes.

Here is a link to some 100 Good Wish Quilt http://www.originalquilts.com/100_good_wishes_quilts.htm#Why%20are%20Ladybugs%20significant

Love,
Terry and Amy

Easter

2007-04-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter. I think in all we dyed 4 dozen eggs. We dyed some eggs from Mrs. Becky's farm, the kids' at my mom's dyed eggs and then we dyed some on Easter. We did something I swore I'd never do again- we spent a holiday in Marthaville. Lee loves being there and he does adore Granny and Terry's grandmother asked us to go, I caved and we went. As a sign-- it snowed. Lee went to an Easter egg hunt in the snow with Gusty's church. He had a ball. Of course Big Granny cooked an unbelievable breakfast. For those of you who know- yes there were catheads involved. For those of you who think I have lost my mind, Terry's family refers to biscuits as catheads. Strange right?

Lee is really into this pirate thing. His Aunt Chelle gave him a "gift set" (as he calls it) of Peter Pan garb. Aunt Peg and Mrs. Becky each gave him big Pirate of the Caribean baskets. He hasn't seen the movie and doesn't want to, he only wants all things pirate. Anyway, I wanted to share some pictures.

Special Olympics & Autism

2007-04-06T13:11:00.000-07:00

Last week our class participated in the local area Special Olympic games. We had a great time. It is so nice to be together with the families away from school. I have been truly blessed to have such wonderful families to work with. It is not uncommon to have the same students for 5 years, so obviously bonds are formed and I wouldn't change it for the world. Some of these pictures are of kids I taught who are now at the high school. I still feel very connected to them and to their families. During one of the events all of the participants were students I have or have had. It was a great feeling to have all of the them together!

April is National Autism Awareness month. Here is a link to a video and song dealing with Autism. It is very well done. http://www.whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com/videos/view/id/213154

Oprah did an entire show on Autism yesterday. She did a great job on touching on how families are dealing with this "epidemic" as the CDC is now calling it. Here's a link to the show if you want to check it out. http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200704/tows_past_20070405.jhtml

Happy Easter everyone!!

Couldn't resist...

2007-04-01T07:35:00.000-07:00

When trying to pick the pics to post about the Easter party I realized how many beautiful kids were there and how each of their stories were so unique. So, I decided to share a few of the pictures I took of some of the kids that stood out because of their stories or just because they were just too darn cute not to snap a picture.

Easter Party

2007-04-01T07:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had our annual Easter party with our adoption agency. We had the best time. It is so nice to be with families like ours. There were no stares, no rude comments, or rude questions but there was a sincere celebration of families joined by adoption.

Usually, Lee doesn't like to get dirty. Today he played super hard and had a ball in the sand. Of course he and Tae-Woo stuck together. They are true buddies. At one point we looked around and saw a sea of kids born in Russia, Korea, China, Kazakhstan, Guatemala and other countries. What we did not see was Lee and Tae-Woo. We panicked. When we looked harder we saw them sitting away from the group in 2 LSU party chairs talking and drinking cokes they snuck. Lori and I laughed--- like fathers like sons.

Pil Suhng!

2007-03-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

Lee has been taking Choi Kwang Do classes for almost 2 months. He goes two times a week. It was our hope that it would help him get rid of some of his aggression, and of course learn a part of the Korean culture. We are very thankful for the lessons learned in self discipline and the Korean vocabulary he has learned. However, we had no idea it would turn into a new obsession... weaponry. Not that Choi Kwang Do instructors use any sort of weapons per say, but in Lee's mind they go hand in hand (I told Terry to stop watch Star Wars in front oh him, but he never listens). Anyway, here are a few pics from his first belt testing. Enjoy.

HD, LCD, Plasma- WHAT???

2007-03-18T16:51:00.000-07:00

Well Mary Johnson I hope you are reading this because I surprised Terry with an ultimate surprise. He was out of town and then at a golf tournament this weekend. He has been wanting a high definition TV since we got together with some friends for the Sugar Bowl and he saw the difference. I have put him off and put him off claiming it wasn't a necessity (and it's not) but truth be told I didn't want it to be a focus point for our living room and I really like the armoire our TV is in. Anyway, long story short, while he was visiting friends he called to inform me 'Too Hotty' had a 42 inch HD TV and he was in love with the TV. I figured Terry really doesn't ask for much so against my better judgement I went and bought him this TV and this cabinet since the TV is so friggin big it will not fit in the armoire.

This was an experience since I had no idea what I was looking for. I had to have major help from the sales associates. I am sure they had a good laugh. I kept getting all of the terms confused, and by the end I forgot what Terry said the main points were. Terry was somewhat surprised. He said he had a clue because I had asked a little too much about his friends' TV. Oh well... I tried.

He said other than the surprise SuperBowl party we threw for him when the Steelers made it, this was the sweetest thing I had ever done for him. Does anyone other than me see a theme here? I guess I really need to look inside myself since these 2 acts rank and nothing else is as memorable. In my eyes it's an eye sore, in Lee's eyes Peter Pan has never looked so good, and in Terry's eyes sports in general has never looked so good. Great- just in time for baseball season.

So Mary... you see I can be nice. :)

The Wait

2007-03-15T17:34:00.000-07:00

Here is a tidbit of info we got from our agency's newsletter today. I not too sure what I think. Last week we reached our 1 year log in date anniversary. The LID is the day the CCAA (Chinese Consulant) enters your dossier (tons of documents, legal, authenticated, and certified) into their system. It's when the waiting really starts. We never imagined we'd still be waiting. We were told last week we should prepare ourselves for a longer wait. Best case we'd get a referral (match) in December. According to this things may be speeding up or maybe that's just what we want to see.

We have been in the adoption process for our baby girl for 2 years since we were originally in the Korean program again. Up until now the wait has not been difficult but as time passes and babies all around us are being adopted and being born the wait gets harder and harder. We have a few things in the making to help the time to pass. More to come on this a little later. We'll need your help though.

Of course we are no strangers to waiting. We waited only 5 months to be matched with Lee and another 5 months before he traveled. I can promise that the wait was worth every second and every tear and I am sure this adoption will be no different.

If you made it this far with all of my belly aching thank for listening. I promise I will not always be this blah- just needed to get this off of my chest.

Amy

Child Match Department
Current Child Match Statistics
Log In Date (LID)
Oct. 14 – Oct 24, 2005
Match Date
3/5/2007
Children Matched
5
Age Range
7 – 12 months *
* Matched to families who requested and qualified for 0-12 months.

The current wait from the time a dossier is logged in at the CCAA (LID) until a match is received is approximately 17 -18 months for children with no known medical conditions. If your dossier was logged in at the CCAA in September, for example, count October as month one.

Of the matches that arrived on 2/2/07, we received expedited referrals for families of Chinese descent whose dossiers were logged in between March 15 – 31, 2006. There were 6 boys in this match group who were matched with families who requested “boy only” or “no preference.”

In the Waiting Child Program we have placed 35 children in 2007. The current wait for a Travel Notice for these families is 2-4 months from the time that both the dossier and family’s Letter of Intent are logged in at the CCAA.

New at this

2007-03-14T14:58:00.000-07:00

Please be patient with me as I try to blog thing out. Someone from an adoption message board convinced me to do this.

I know this is a little late but I wanted to share some pictures from our Christmas trip to New York - just for you Julee! My mom has always wanted to ice skate in Central Park. She is a huge fan, even tapes competitions. Anyway, last time we were in NY was during the summer so this time she was able to skate. It was just too funny to even begin to explain. Let's just say her bottom was no stranger to the ice and tears were shed but not from being hurt but from me laughing and my mom cried because she couldn't believe what she had just did. I will spare her the embarrassment of having the crying pictures posted, but I must say those pictures are something to see.

I promise I'll post recent pictures eventually.

And of course, I can't help but to include a few pics of Lee from our New York trip.

Amy