Happy Moon Festival!

Happy Moon Festival, Everyone!!!

We're going to celebrate tomorrow, because David is working tonight. But, we have our Mooncakes ready, and I'm going to cook something round to celebrate. Then we'll go outside and eat our Mooncakes while gazing at the full moon! I'm sure, like last year, we'll be dreaming of Micalee and wondering if she was taken outside to see the full moon, too. I'm sure her birth family will be looking into the moon and wondering what her future will be like. I hope they know how much we appreciate the opportunity they are giving us. Because of their decision to leave their little girl in safe place to be found, we will be a family! We can never thank them enough, and we will always be grateful. And each Moon Festival, we will be thinking of them.

Peek into Micalee's room...

Hey everybody! I created a link to a new blog that will be all about Micalee's room! So far, I have pictures of some of her clothes and toys. I may post before and after pictures, eventually, but for now, it's mostly a look into her closet and dresser! Be sure to check it out, and keep checking back for additions to the site. If I did this correctly, you should be able to click on this doll. If that doesn't work, there is link over to the left, just below the picture of Millie and her own blog (have you checked out Millie's site?!). I hope you enjoy this sneak peek!

18 months down....how many more to go?

Well, it's official! We've been LID'd for 18 months! Do you know how much can & has happened in 18 months!?! At Jacob's party, I was reminded of just what 18 months looks like. The day after we sent in our application to our adoption agency, my sister, Jeanie, announced she was pregnant. During her pregnacny, we were in the midst of our paper chase (the begining or our "paper pregnancy"). Jace (Jacob's little brother) was born Feb. 27, 2006, just 10 days after our dossier was sent to China and 11 days before we were officially logged in (LID). Now he's an adorable 18 month old toddler, and a constant reminder of how long we've been waiting and the days of Micalee's early childhood that we will miss. When Jeanie announced she was pregnant, we all thought Jace & Micalee would possible be arriving in our family about the same time, but of course, that hasn't been the case. But now, she will most likely fall in the "correct birth order" and will have 2 wonderful cousins close to her age that I know will be like big brothers!

Happy Birthday, Jacob!!!

Happy Birthday, Jacob!!!!!! We love you so very much!!!!!!!

Today is my nephew Jacob's 5th birthday! I can't believe how much he has grown since that 3 pound 4 ounce little premature baby 5 years ago! He is the sweetest, funniest little boy! He is so smart and full of so much personality! And he says the funniest and "beyond his years" things! His birthday party is Saturday, which makes me think of the phone conversation I had with him just one year ago on his 4th birthday. I was sitting right here at this very computer, talking to him on the phone before going to his party. He asked me if we were bringing Micalee to his birthday party. I tried to explain to him that Micalee was still somewhere in China, and he said, "why did David leave Micalee in China?"! I couldn't help laugh; I must always make everything seem David's fault! He assumed that if Micalee was still in China, it must have been because of something David did! I also remember telling him that although Micalee wouldn't be coming to his party that day, she would definitely be there for his 5th birthday party. Boy, was I wrong! I would have never dreamed a year ago, that things were going to slow down to the point it has! As the "Rumor Queen" so graciously pointed out, there were only four months worth of referrals matched in the last year! But, on a good note, if it stays at the same turtle's pace, we should have our referral by this time next year, as we're less than four months of LID's behind the last batch of referrals. I'm still hoping for a slight speed up, so we can get our referral earlier in 2008, so MAYBE Micalee will be here for Jacob's 6th birthday party!!!

In Memory of David's Mother...

For those of you that do not already know, David's mother, Evelyn Wrightson, passed away this past Monday, August 27th. She's finally where she's wanted to be for the past 14 years, with her beloved husband. David was able to make it to Florida the Friday before, and had the chance to say good-bye. I have seen that something good can come from tragedy. This has brought David and his family closer together and has helped mend ties that have not been so strong through the years. I know this is something his mother is very proud of. I also had the pleasure of meeting some of David's family that I had never had the opportunity to meet. Just like my immediate family, there are some unique personalities (you know who you are!), and I truly felt like part of the family. I wish I could take some of the pain away that David and his family are feeling, but I know it's just part of the grieving process. It will just take some time. And listening to them all talk about their memories of their mother and father, I know they will get through this. Again, please keep them in your prayers. And to Howard and Evelyn Wrightson, thank you for your wonderful son, David. You raised a wonderful, loving and caring man, and I will always be grateful to both of you.

When it rains, it pours!

Wow, what a week it's been! First, our central A/C went out, just when we start having record high temps (over 100, with heat index over 110)! We put in a couple of window units which helped, but in the process, David drilled through the coils of one and ruined it, so we had to go buy a new one! I had to laugh (there was nothing else to do but laugh), but David didn't find it too fuuny! We had to replace the entire unit (A/C and heat), so that was a huge insult to the savings account. But with the rate of the referrals, we should be able to save that amount back up before we travel to China! We went four days without A/C, but it's in and blowing COLD!!! David had to have a "procedure" and is still very sore, but everything went well. However, his mother, who has been in the hospital for about a week, has just been diagnosed with Small Cell Carcinoma (cancer) of the lungs, and has been given 6 to 8 weeks to live. David is still recovering and is trying to figure out when he can make the trip to Florida. I can't stand to see him so upset and worry so much, and I'm not sure what to do for him. I'm usually good at this kind of thing (with family members of my patients), but when it comes to family, I can't seem to find the right words. I'm just trying to be there for him. He's taking all of this pretty hard. Please keep him and his family in your prayers!

17 Months down.....how many more to go?

I can't beleive it's been 17 months since our log in date (LID)!!! I had planned on losing lots of weight and getting in shape, and I've had more than plenty of time! I guess it's never too late to start! Hopefully, it won't be another 17 months of waiting....surely not....right?!?!

The Wait...

Well, I see there have been a few optimists voting on the current poll!!! Our agency received referrals today, and the CCAA has officially matched through Nov 21, 2005. That's 7 days worth of LID's since the last batch of referrals. For those on you who read this blog that aren't in the adoption process (my family!), That means were are 109 LID days behind the current referrals (number of days between Nov 21, 2005 and March 10, 2006 - our Log In Date). If the CCAA continues to match only 7 days worth each month, that means we'd expect to wait for another 15 months (109 left divided by 7 days worth per month = 15 months), which would mean a referral for us in November 2008! However, the CCAA has matched as little as 2 days, and a long time ago, a month's worth or more per month, and no one can predict what will happen. The rumor is that things are going to speed up once they are past November (which was supposedly a huge LID month). If so, and they start to match 1/2 months of LID's per month, then we could get a referral in April or May 2008. It's really just a guessing game, and only time will tell!!! I used to stress out every month that referrals came out, but I finally reached the point in realizing I have no control over it (and you know how much I hate NOT having control!), and maybe there really is a reason for this long wait. Maybe people are right that say we will be matched with the perfect little girl for us! I just can't wait to find that out for myself!

What's new?

What's new since I created this blog?! Well, I'm officially off of orientation in Day Surgery. It's quite a change from SICU; MUCH LESS STRESSFUL!!! I'm getting used to getting up at 5 AM, and getting off at 2:30 everyday is great! My first weekend of call was terrible, but I hear that was unusual, so we'll wait and see. I miss having the same schedule as David, and I think he misses it even more! But we're adjusting. This was the long term plan, and the hours will be great once Micalee is home. Now we need to get David on days and things will be even better! Jeanie asked me the other day if I could tell her when we thought we might travel to China. I've been thinking about it, and it's still very hard to say. My "best guess" is that we'll get our referral in May 2008 and travel in July 2008 (unless the Olympics becomes a problem, but my "hope" is a referral in Feb (my birthday month) and travel in April (David's birthday month). We'll just have to wait and see!

The Making of Micalee's Room

China Ghosts

For Father's Day, I got David a book about Adoption from China. It's from a Father's perspective, but he says it's a "must read". It's Called China Ghosts. The author belongs to one of our Yahoo groups. He and his wife have adopted two little girls, using the same agency we're using.

Micalee's Room

We haven't done too much in Micalee's room recently. We still need to some painting, but I think we have plenty of time. I need to sort through all of the clothes! We've picked up alot when we see things on sale or something we just can't do without. The problem is that we have no idea what size she'll be wearing, so we have quite a variety, from 9 months up to 2T. Jeanie keeps picking up things every now and then, too!