I know it's been awhile. I just haven't felt like blogging. I'm not good at putting my thoughts into words, especially for others to read (if anyone even reads this stuff!)
We got approval from the CCCWA to accept our late paperwork! That was an exciting day! Lots of dancing and singing and praising God! We went through so much to get our paperwork done on time and sent in, but a combination of our government and the CCCWA, kept us from getting it logged in before the October 1st deadline. Since our son-to-be is considered hard-to-place, our agency asked for leniency so that he won't have to wait any longer than necessary for his family. They agreed! It looks like we'll travel sometime next spring.
I read some very good news today! We started the adoption process this time around back in March when I saw a blog about a 12 year old girl who was aging out in China. She had a repaired cleft lip and palate, and she looked so sweet and sad in her picture. We started the paperwork specifically to bring her home. There was a family who had wanted to adopt her, but they had 4 younger children at home and had been advised by many people that adopting a child out of birth order, especially a girl, might not be a good thing. So they decided to not pursue her adoption and were advocating for someone else to adopt her. When I heard that, I had reservations too. When our homestudy provider told us they wouldn't approve us to adopt out of birth order, I was relieved to not have to make the decision. I felt so bad for her and continued to see her picture on others' blogs advocating for her. Today I read that the family who originally wanted to adopt her, with the four younger children, have moved forward with her adoption anyway! Such wonderful news! I have read other blogs where families have adopted older children out of birth order and it's worked out fine. Maybe next time! :) I texted Doug today to tell him about the Duggar's expecting baby #20, and I told him we're only 15 away from catching up to Jim Bob and Michelle! He just laughed. Who said I was joking?!
Marlee and Russell have been home a little over 2 weeks now. We've had a great time catching up with them and spending time playing with their two beautiful kittens! We will be so sad to say goodbye to them on Saturday, especially since they'll be moving to Alaska in April for four years!
That's all for now. Hopefully I'll update more often.
November 8, 2011
September 19, 2011
Still nothing!
So much for the help of our congressman! Still nothing from the USCIS. We've been in touch with our agency and another homestudy provider. Just waiting to hear what we need to do and how much it will cost. The director of our adoption agency, the person who told us we had plenty of time to get our paperwork done and logged in before the October 1 deadline, isn't there anymore! We got a phone call Friday afternoon telling us he is no longer with the agency. We don't know why, but we do know the interim director is the same man who was the director when we adopted Tessa and Jerremy. He had left the agency to do mission work with his family in Vietnam. They are back in the States and he will be taking over until they can find a replacement. We have a lot of respect for him, so we're not concerned.
On the school front, things are looking up! The kids are still doing cyber school, but just as I was about to crash and burn, God intervened and an angel stepped in and rescued us! I now take the kids to a cyber school building, with a wonderful real teacher who guides them through their lessons and has patience like no other! We're so thankful for Miss Patty and Achievement House. And when the snow flies this winter and I don't want to brave the snow covered roads to get them to school, we can still do school from our cozy home! Thank you, God! You're awesome!
Our exchange student comes from a very warm part of China, so he doesn't like our fall-like weather we've been having. He wore his big heavy winter coat to church on Sunday, and he asked if winter will be this cold! Oh my! He's in for a real surprise when it gets below 0 deg.
On the school front, things are looking up! The kids are still doing cyber school, but just as I was about to crash and burn, God intervened and an angel stepped in and rescued us! I now take the kids to a cyber school building, with a wonderful real teacher who guides them through their lessons and has patience like no other! We're so thankful for Miss Patty and Achievement House. And when the snow flies this winter and I don't want to brave the snow covered roads to get them to school, we can still do school from our cozy home! Thank you, God! You're awesome!
Our exchange student comes from a very warm part of China, so he doesn't like our fall-like weather we've been having. He wore his big heavy winter coat to church on Sunday, and he asked if winter will be this cold! Oh my! He's in for a real surprise when it gets below 0 deg.
September 9, 2011
TGIF
I'm so glad it's Friday! This cyber school stuff is very stressful! I'm almost ready to give up, but I won't! Tessa and I don't like it at all, but Jerremy likes it a lot. We get started around 8:15 a.m., work until almost Noon, and are still at it at 4:00 p.m.! We stop just because we can't take anymore, and then after we eat dinner, we finish up what we didn't get done. I'm thinking I might be able to handle traditional homeschool better than this. It's just making us so unhappy and it's not a good feeling.
Our exchange student is very nice. He seems to be over the jet-lag-tiredness now. He told his mother he likes my cooking and he likes how Doug jokes around with him. I made him plain rice the second day he was here. He said, "I eat rice two times a day for 16 years. I no want anymore rice!" We laughed. One of our favorite meals is a microwave chicken and rice dish that I make every few weeks. So the night I served it, I made him leftover ravioli that he liked the night before. Turns out he liked the chicken and rice so much, he had 3 servings and didn't touch the ravioli.
It's almost October 1, and we haven't gotten our paperwork back from the USCIS. Our adoption agency told us to get our congressman involved. We did that, but it's too late now for us to get it back, drive it to Harrisburg for certification, overnight it to New York City to the Chinese Consulate and wait for them to review it and return it, and then have our agency send it to China and be logged in before October 1! It's looking like we'll be having to find a new homestudy provider, pay thousands of dollars more, and then send that to the USCIS for another 90 day wait!
There's nothing easy about adoption. I was thinking today that had we not decided to adopt again, our lives would be moving along at a comfortable pace, with the kids still at their small Christian school and me probably only working one part-time job. None of this crazy cyber school stuff trying to save money; no stressing about the paperwork getting back in time. It sounded pretty good, until I thought about Winn still in China with no family to call his own. And as much as the thought of a comfortable life is, I wouldn't give up one day of the process to bring him home! God will get us through, no matter what!
Our exchange student is very nice. He seems to be over the jet-lag-tiredness now. He told his mother he likes my cooking and he likes how Doug jokes around with him. I made him plain rice the second day he was here. He said, "I eat rice two times a day for 16 years. I no want anymore rice!" We laughed. One of our favorite meals is a microwave chicken and rice dish that I make every few weeks. So the night I served it, I made him leftover ravioli that he liked the night before. Turns out he liked the chicken and rice so much, he had 3 servings and didn't touch the ravioli.
It's almost October 1, and we haven't gotten our paperwork back from the USCIS. Our adoption agency told us to get our congressman involved. We did that, but it's too late now for us to get it back, drive it to Harrisburg for certification, overnight it to New York City to the Chinese Consulate and wait for them to review it and return it, and then have our agency send it to China and be logged in before October 1! It's looking like we'll be having to find a new homestudy provider, pay thousands of dollars more, and then send that to the USCIS for another 90 day wait!
There's nothing easy about adoption. I was thinking today that had we not decided to adopt again, our lives would be moving along at a comfortable pace, with the kids still at their small Christian school and me probably only working one part-time job. None of this crazy cyber school stuff trying to save money; no stressing about the paperwork getting back in time. It sounded pretty good, until I thought about Winn still in China with no family to call his own. And as much as the thought of a comfortable life is, I wouldn't give up one day of the process to bring him home! God will get us through, no matter what!
August 21, 2011
Disappointed... but thankful!
Our yard sale fundraiser was disappointing. My expectations were too high. I feel let down in a lot of different ways, but I am very thankful for the few people who helped us and for those who donated things. We are so very grateful to our friends Wes and Tricia who have gone above and beyond what we could ever ask for! Thankful for Kendall, Brandon, & Allison's help, and the help of our CCCS friends! It was a lot of work and we're exhausted. Still trusting God, who never disappoints, to provide what we need in one way or another!
Our Chinese exchange student will be here in the early morning hours on Saturday. He's going to need a dresser, and when Winn comes home, it will be his. We found an antique dresser two weeks ago that was nice and solid and the price was great. Should have bought it then! We went back today to get it, but it was already sold. Live and learn. We've never gone to yard sales or been antiquing, but because ours was coming up, we hit some yard sales and antique stores two weekends ago to try to see if we could get an idea of how to price things. We had so much fun! But now we'll know that if we see something that we really like, and the price is right, buy it then!
We had another chicken given to us two weeks ago, but it turns out she's a rooster and he can't stay. He's mean to the hens and he's mean to anyone who gets too close to him. He refuses to go into the coop at night with the others. We just couldn't tell at first that it was a rooster. He's only 5 months old. I looked online to see what the experts had to say. Over the past two weeks, his tail has gotten longer and his feathers are very shiny, both signs of a rooster. The real giveaway was his weak, new crowing that we thought we heard occasionally, and now he's started crowing in the early morning hours. Bye bye Brownie!
Tomorrow starts the last full week of summer vacation. It's gone by so fast, as usual. The kids are bummed, but even though they'll be home doing cyber school this school year, I'm ready to get into a routine again.
Well, I'm so tired I could fall asleep at the computer! Goodnight all!
Our Chinese exchange student will be here in the early morning hours on Saturday. He's going to need a dresser, and when Winn comes home, it will be his. We found an antique dresser two weeks ago that was nice and solid and the price was great. Should have bought it then! We went back today to get it, but it was already sold. Live and learn. We've never gone to yard sales or been antiquing, but because ours was coming up, we hit some yard sales and antique stores two weekends ago to try to see if we could get an idea of how to price things. We had so much fun! But now we'll know that if we see something that we really like, and the price is right, buy it then!
We had another chicken given to us two weeks ago, but it turns out she's a rooster and he can't stay. He's mean to the hens and he's mean to anyone who gets too close to him. He refuses to go into the coop at night with the others. We just couldn't tell at first that it was a rooster. He's only 5 months old. I looked online to see what the experts had to say. Over the past two weeks, his tail has gotten longer and his feathers are very shiny, both signs of a rooster. The real giveaway was his weak, new crowing that we thought we heard occasionally, and now he's started crowing in the early morning hours. Bye bye Brownie!
Tomorrow starts the last full week of summer vacation. It's gone by so fast, as usual. The kids are bummed, but even though they'll be home doing cyber school this school year, I'm ready to get into a routine again.
Well, I'm so tired I could fall asleep at the computer! Goodnight all!
August 12, 2011
Fingerprint Appointments
We got our fingerprint appointments! But they aren't until August 30 in Pittsburgh. The October 12 deadline is definitely looking doubtful. Prayers would be appreciated.
I'm so proud of my firstborn! Kendall got a 4.0 for this semester! She graduated from high school with a 4.0+, college with a 4.0, and aiming for a 4.0 for graduate school! Can't figure out where she got her brains from... Congratulations, Kendall!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
I'm so proud of my firstborn! Kendall got a 4.0 for this semester! She graduated from high school with a 4.0+, college with a 4.0, and aiming for a 4.0 for graduate school! Can't figure out where she got her brains from... Congratulations, Kendall!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
August 10, 2011
Waiting (not so) Patiently
It's been almost 3 weeks since we mailed our paperwork to the USCIS office in Dallas. Still waiting for fingerprint appointments. I was hoping for something in the mail today, but it didn't come.
The kids are going to try cyber school this year. We've been cutting costs every way we can, and short of sending them to public school, we've decided cyber school would be a good thing to try. We tried a Christian-based online school last year, and it didn't work out at all! We were so disappointed, but after only a week I couldn't deal with all the crying (me!) They had to type everything, and being 8 and 9 years old, they could only hunt and peck and it was very frustrating being behind after only 3 days. So we sent them back to the Christian school. Anyway, we got a desk for Jerremy at a yard sale over the weekend. Their books for cyber school came last week and their computers were delivered Monday. Praying for a great school year.
We are getting an exchange student! Ran is a 15 year old boy from China! He will be here in a few weeks and will go to school at the Christian school. We're hoping to learn some key phrases in Chinese that will help Winn transition to our family. Maybe Ran will even still be here when Winn gets home and we would have an interpreter!
I haven't baked a gob cake in almost 2 weeks! I'm not complaining. I was so busy with work and baking that I was getting pretty stressed, so until my second part-time job is over in November, I'm not going to push the gob cakes. Once that's over, I hope to be baking up a storm, including some pumpkin spice gob cakes!
Marlee's birthday was yesterday. I can't believe she's 20 already! We got to skype with her and Russell last night. It was so good to be able to at least see her on her special day. Kendall and Brandon are at the beach. They stopped at Marlee and Russell's on the way there for a few days. It makes me so happy to have my girls spending precious time together and loving it! As kids they didn't get along much, so to see them as adults wanting to spend time with each other is a great blessing!
Off to work on yardsale stuff!
The kids are going to try cyber school this year. We've been cutting costs every way we can, and short of sending them to public school, we've decided cyber school would be a good thing to try. We tried a Christian-based online school last year, and it didn't work out at all! We were so disappointed, but after only a week I couldn't deal with all the crying (me!) They had to type everything, and being 8 and 9 years old, they could only hunt and peck and it was very frustrating being behind after only 3 days. So we sent them back to the Christian school. Anyway, we got a desk for Jerremy at a yard sale over the weekend. Their books for cyber school came last week and their computers were delivered Monday. Praying for a great school year.
We are getting an exchange student! Ran is a 15 year old boy from China! He will be here in a few weeks and will go to school at the Christian school. We're hoping to learn some key phrases in Chinese that will help Winn transition to our family. Maybe Ran will even still be here when Winn gets home and we would have an interpreter!
I haven't baked a gob cake in almost 2 weeks! I'm not complaining. I was so busy with work and baking that I was getting pretty stressed, so until my second part-time job is over in November, I'm not going to push the gob cakes. Once that's over, I hope to be baking up a storm, including some pumpkin spice gob cakes!
Marlee's birthday was yesterday. I can't believe she's 20 already! We got to skype with her and Russell last night. It was so good to be able to at least see her on her special day. Kendall and Brandon are at the beach. They stopped at Marlee and Russell's on the way there for a few days. It makes me so happy to have my girls spending precious time together and loving it! As kids they didn't get along much, so to see them as adults wanting to spend time with each other is a great blessing!
Off to work on yardsale stuff!
July 29, 2011
Chickens
Our chickens make me laugh! I could be in a bad mood, but as soon as I see a chicken running, I laugh so hard! We have 26 chickens now. We've had a good supply of eggs for almost a year. But now that people are finding out how good fresh brown eggs are (I won't mention any names, but you know who you are), along with me using so many in my gob cakes, we're having a hard time keeping up with the demand. I told Doug we're going to have to add on to the chicken coop and get more. He's all for the idea of getting more chickens, but he insists there's plenty of room already for more.
It's hard to believe summer vacation will be over in a month! The kids have been working on some summer homework (grudgingly) and still have some reading to do. I can't understand their dislike for reading. I love to read and, if time allowed, that's what I would do all day, every day. If anyone has any recommendations on some books that might keep their interest and make them look forward to reading, I'd love to hear them.
That's all for today. Have a great weekend!
It's hard to believe summer vacation will be over in a month! The kids have been working on some summer homework (grudgingly) and still have some reading to do. I can't understand their dislike for reading. I love to read and, if time allowed, that's what I would do all day, every day. If anyone has any recommendations on some books that might keep their interest and make them look forward to reading, I'd love to hear them.
That's all for today. Have a great weekend!
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