Well summer is flying by. I have started a list of things I need to get done before I go to China. The picture at the left is of a scrapbook page I have started. I am trying to get a lot of pages put together so all I need to do is get photos to put on them and a little narrative. I am trying to get organized now because I know my life will change!!! ( I put in this photo because Mom saw the aunt and uncle and cousin pages last weekend and wanted to make sure there was a grandparents page! - Yes Mom, here it is!!!).
Rumors are flying around about time. The truth is nobody but the officials in China know for sure and they aren't saying. It may be in December and it may be a year from October - depending on who you listen to. I am hoping for December!

Monday night I went to a potluck dinner for Nelson - the guide for my adoption agency in China. Nelson was here for just a couple days. I have heard so many wonderful things about him and he seemed so nice. I got to introduce myself to him. He will be so important in this adoption process. I can hardly wait to see him again! I also got to see the other family in my travel group again. That was very nice.

The families that had sent their dossiers to China in July had received their referrals that morning. They were so excited. Everyone was looking at their pictures and congratulating them. And then someone pointed out that there are only two more groups to get their referrals before my group will. It is still going to be a while but when I look at it this way it seems a lot closer. I have so much to do!!!!! So I have started. I went out and bought two sets of spare batteries for the digital camera (I already had bought an extra memory card - I plan on taking a lot of pictures!) and bought a spare battery for the camcorder - now I just need to figure out how to use it! I found a baby gate I have had in the basement for years. I planned on using it when Twinkle and Boo were kittens to keep them out of the bedrooms. Well hopefully it will work better for my daughter than it did for my kitties. It only took them twenty-four hours to figure out how to climb up the thing and go over it! I am also working on my Chinese again. I got some flash cards and a workbook. I am determined to learn a little.

One of the newer parents at the potluck have taught their daughter some baby sign language and I decided that sounded like a really good idea so today I picked up a book and I am going to try to learn a few signs. It should be a lot easier than Chinese!!!

I bought this cute little dress last year around the 4th of July. I thought at the time I could be using it this summer. Now my plan is to get a red or white long sleeved shirt for my daughter to wear under this when I take her to the US consulate in China to get her US visa. I have found a cute little red bow for her hair and some red tights too.

Today I had my homestudy update. My caseworker, Marg, came to the house and we updated all the information I gave her last year when she did my homestudy. The original homestudy expires a year after it is done so it is required to have an update. I showed her the nursery and the toys, books, and clothes I have so far. She said it looked like I was all ready. I even have a stroller now. I ordered it last week and it arrived two days ago. I have it all assembled and it is ready for an occupant! I think it will make a lot of trips to the ice cream place down the street next year!

I couldn't resist taking this picture of Twinkle relaxing in the glider in the nursery. It is one of his favorite napping places. Marg asked him if he is looking forward to having a sister. He didn't answer her. Having a two-legged sister will be a big adjustment for Twinkle and Boo. I admit they are very, very spoiled cats. But I can't help it. They are sooooo lovable! I will just have to make sure they still get special attention from "mom".

What a wonderful weekend. I made it to the farmer's market and stocked up on some fresh peas, green beans and strawberries. Then I came home and picked raspberries in my garden. I ate good this weekend! I went to a movie on Saturday afternoon. It was a warm day and it just sounded good to sit in a movie theater. This afternoon I went to Starbucks and read some information about saving for retirement and college. I figured if I had to read that stuff I deserved a frappachino. Yes, I do not even have my daughter yet but I am planning her college education fund. I have great news too. I have already saved $l.66. Yes that is one dollar and sixty-six cents! Hey, its a start! I signed up for this program at the store where I get money back in a college saving account when I buy certain products. So when I buy a carton of orange juice I save five cents for college. Laundry detergent may save me seven cents! Of course at this rate I will only be able to buy her one textbook when she goes to college. I can also save 1% of my purchases at some stores like Bed, Bath, and Beyond. So I am saving for my daughter's college education when I go shopping. Maybe Tuesday I will go save some more for her!

I have been so encouraged by the news that the October dossiers are now in the matching room that I am starting to think about things I will need again. I have been taking a look a strollers again and getting advice from friends. I also went back into the toy section at Target and found another set of animals for Noah's Ark. I now have the leopards, kangaroos, and hippos. They are soooo cute. The ark is now officially stuffed though so no more animals. I also found a cute little cloth book with a panda that will be a great little toy to play with on the plane. I told Mom and Dad about it and Dad wanted to make sure I was talking about using it on the way home and not expecting him to play with it on the trip to China! I also picked up some Tot Locks to put on cabinets. I need to start baby-proofing the house. I am trying to be good about cloths though. I did break down and get some pj's and a cute little pair of slippers. And I almost forgot - I got a cute little pair of 4th of July socks. Last year I picked up a little red, white, and blue dress that was out for the 4th but I decided she will need some socks to wear with it when I take her to the American Embassy to process the paperwork to bring her home! Now I just need to find a little hair thing to wear with it. I must run to the store!

Dates to Remember

May 1,2005 Started paperchase
August 31, 2005 Fingerprinted
October 7, 2005 Turned in paperwork to Gift of Love
October 28, 2005 LID (this is the official log in date of my paperwork at the China Center for Adoption
Affairs-CCAA)
June 22, 2006 CCAA website updated to say dossiers logged in by October 31, 2005 are out of the
review room.

I am still months away from getting my child but I feel a step closer. My dossier is now in the matching room where someone will take my information and match it with a child's dossier!

I decided I should try this again before I forget how. When I started this adoption process I thought I would be receiving my referral about now and getting ready to travel to China. The process has slowed down a lot and right now I do not have any idea when I may go to China. It may be December, it may be a year from now. I am hoping for sooner!!! Anyway I am trying to find things to do to keep busy. When I first turned in my dossier I found this glider chair on sale and bought it. It was a discontinued model and did not have an ottoman with it. Last week I found this unfinished wooden box with lid at Michaels and I covered it with padding and fabric. It makes a great ottoman and I think will be a nice seat to set my daughter on when I am putting on her shoes and socks. I can hardly wait to read her stories in this chair - and yes, I have tried out the chair. Some nights I will grab one of the books I have for her and read to Twinkle and Boo. Their favorite story is of course The Kitten Twins. My favorite is I Love You Like Crazy Cakes. It is about a single mom and her journey to adopt a little girl from China. It makes me cry but I love it. I have given up on buying clothes for now. It is hard to know what to get when I don't have any idea what time of year I will get her or how big she will be. Plus I already have clothes I have purchased and some great hand-me-downs from Deb's kids. I can't wait to take her picture in a Christmas dress that was originally Megan's or Erin's and the pink jacket that McKenzie was so cute in. So anyway I have moved on to toys. Fisher Price has an Asian girl in some of their Little People sets. I could not resist getting a little set called Night at the Ball and their Noah's Ark set has pandas. Needless to say I got that one too! This afternoon I finally broke down and took them out of the boxes and played with them myself! So anyway that is some of what I am doing to pass the time. I just keep a prayer in my heart that my daughter is being well cared for until I can take care of her myself.

Today was my day off and I had a great day! The weather was beautiful. I opened up the house and Twinkle and Boo enjoyed some fresh air. I uncovered the rosebushes, watched some robins gather things for their nest, pulled some weeds which are already starting to grow, and looked for signs of spring. The daffodils are starting to bloom. The tulips, bleeding heart, and columbine are all coming up. I got out my bike and went for a nice ride. It was wonderful. I decided to do a few things in the baby's room also. A week ago when Jane and Shelby were here we found these cute room tattoos while we were shopping. I decided to get them put up today. It was fun. I just love them. You just rub them onto the wall. They are supposed to come off easily when you don't want them anymore - much easier than wallpaper to put up and take down! I found a cute little piggy bank when I was out on my bike ride too. Perfect for a little girl's room. I listened to some more of the Mandarin Chinese language CD's that Sandy gave me for Christmas. I think some is sinking in. I am pretty sure I can say most of the numbers between one and ninety-nine. I can say hello, good bye, and I want to buy something! Of course I sound pretty good to myself when I am talking back to the tape in the car.

After Christmas Twinkle and Boo had to check out some of the Christmas presents. Mom and Dad found one of my old dolls, cleaned her up, found her original dress and added one of my baby bonnets. She is all ready to play again! The panda is so cuddly. I am sure it will be one of her favorite toys. Grandma did the ceramic bear basket. It looks great in the room. She has a nice assortment of Christmas ornaments. I have to admit that I bought one for her too.

I started this process about two years ago. I was on a waiting list to apply to adopt from China for about a year. May 1st, 2005 I was told I could start my paperwork. Over the next few months I had to get letters from my employer, physician, local police department, county assessor, friends and family. I had to put together financial documents, get copies of my birth certificate, get a passport, meet with a social worker for my homestudy and get everything notarized, then certified by the state then authenticated by the Chinese Consulate. All this went into my dossier which was finally finished the first week in October. It was raining when I made my last trip to Kinkos to make copies of the dossier. I put my coat over the papers to protect them as I got into the car then I headed to the adoption agency to hand in everything. My paperwork was done. It was sent to China. Now I wait for them to approve me as a parent and then to match me with a child.