Unexpected Surprise

Next to holding her in my own arms, today we received the next best thing. Little Miss B's social report. It contained a ton of information about her including her latest measurements, temperament, sleeping and eating habits, etc., along with 20 plus photos. She has grown over 2 inches and gained 2 lbs since we received her referral. She is so beautiful, she has the biggest brown eyes and full pouty lips. I cannot wait to bring her home. Our court date is August 13, two weeks from today. I cannot post any pictures until the judge declares us as her legal parents, you will just have to take my word.

A Rollercoaster of Emotions

Wow, it's been an up down last few weeks that's for sure. We were so happy to finally have received our referral, and even more thrilled to hear that it was pretty certain we would make it through courts before they closed for the rainy season. Then we hit a snafu, a really big snafu. Before we can get a court date, MOWA (Ministry of Women's Affairs) needs to issue a favorable opinion letter to the courts before a judge will even review our case. Last week we found out that MOWA decided to unexpectedly close for a couple of weeks to review some staffing issues. They are not expected to return until July 24. What this means is, we don't have a court date because we don't have a letter from MOWA. And once MOWA returns, then the judges will be going on their two month leave during the rainy season. I was devestated, I couldn't stand the thought of having to wait an extra two months because of the MOWA closure, and then because of the court closure.

Then I started to hear rumors. Rumors that maybe the judges would work through the rainy season. So I contacted our specialist, but she had heard nothing of the sorts. Again, my heart sank. For a few moments I thought there would be a chance.

Not three hours later my phone rang. I see it's our specialist. "Cheryl, it's Jill. I have some great news. You have a court date of August 13." As I was sitting at my desk and trying to listen to what Jill has to say, my feet are stomping, my arms are waving. Once again I am overjoyed and cannot believe it. One step closer. I guess the judges decided to stay on for a couple of extra weeks and there are several families from my agency that will also go before the judge on this day. Again, this is a tentative court date and things may change but it's step in the right direction. I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that we all pass. After we pass, we wait for a Birth Certificate and then travel. Travel should be about 6-8 weeks after court. Hang on Little Miss B. We are getting closer!

You Are 6 Months Old Today!

Dear Little Miss B,

Today you turn 6 months old. Although we are not yet together physically, know that we are together emotionally and spiritually. We are always thinking of you from the moment we wake up until the moment we go to sleep. We are amazed at how much we love you; how much we need you, even though we have not yet even met.

I Wish I Could Fit!!!

Our agency allows us to send one care package to Little Miss B, however, it all has to fit into a one gallon size ziplock bag. We are sending a blanket, a small photo album, 5x7 pics of Randy and I, a small rattle, and a Brewers t-shirt. I wish there was someway I could fit into this small bag, I would send myself.

What's Next?

Wow, what an overwhelming few weeks. I am still shocked and overjoyed by this news, I still cannot believe we received our referral for this beautiful, amazing, baby girl. I have to admit, I am struggling at work, it's been hard to focus on anything else but her. The support we have had from family, friends, and coworkers has been amazing.

The most common questions we have been receiving is what's next? When do you get to travel? Before we can get on that jet plane, a few things have to happen. First, our case needs to go before an Ethiopian judge. We are now waiting for our case to be scheduled in their court system. We are hoping and praying that we get scheduled prior to August 1. You see, as of August 1, the Ethiopian courts are closed for two months during the rainy season. If we don't get scheduled before then, it will be October before the courts re-open and just that much farther out our travel will be. We have been told by our agency that they are quite hopeful that we will make it. Once the judge declares us as her legal parents, then we wait for a birth certificate. Once that arrives, then we can schedule travel. If we make it before the court closure, I am hopeful we will travel in September.

People are also asking us about her circumstances that led her to be placed into the orphanage. This is something we are not going to share with anyone as this is her life, her story to tell if she so desires once she is old enough to understand.

For the sake of this blog, I will call her Little Miss B as I don't want to reveal her name until we pass court. As much as I want to show you all how beautiful she is, I also cannot post any pictures until then. You will just have to be patient and trust me when I say she is the most beautiful, precious, baby with a perfect pout and big brown eyes.

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!

Last Friday, June 19, 2009, we received the call that we have been waiting to get for over 14 months. It was the call that changed our lives. At 3:30 pm I was at work when my cell phone started ringing. I noticed it was our social worker, but I just thought the call was something to do with our home study since it's about time to have it updated. I answered my phone and the first thing I heard was "It's a girl!" I for sure thought I was hearing things and I said "WHAT?" I think I said what a hundred times. Then after that, I think I said OMG a hundred times. Julie, she is our social worker, asked If I wanted to hear any more information. I said no, not without my husband. So I hung up with Julie, called Randy and tried to tell him the news, but I think I was crying at this point. I finally spit it out and said I was leaving work right then and there so we could speak with Julie together. I ran out the door like a crazy women and drove what seemed like the longest drive ever. I got home, hugged Randy, and then we sat down together and reviewed the referral as we spoke with Julie. She is a healthy and beautiful 5 month old baby girl. We cannot stop staring and studying her picture. What a wonderful Father's Day. Three days later and we are still in shock.

14 Months and then some....

We hit our 14th month of waiting last week. 14 months. Never in a million years did I think we would still be waiting for our referral at this point. If we don't receive and accept a referral by the end of this week, we are quite certain our Ethiopian court hearing will not be scheduled until after the rainy season. During the rainy season, which runs from August - September, the courts are closed. What this means is we would have to wait an additional 2 months, already on top of the 12-16 weeks after referral, until we travel to pick up our son or daughter. I have been on edge all week as I am hoping and praying we hear some news. I spoke with our social worker today and she said she is very, very confident we will hear something soon. I am not sure what she meant by soon, as it seems we have been hearing this for some time now. Did she mean soon as in today, soon as in this week, soon as in this month? I jump every time my work or cell phone rings. My mind is constantly wandering, I am having a hard time focusing at work, I just want to know that this is really going to happen.

In Celebration of Mom

As all you faithful readers, family and friends know, my Mom was diagnosed with breast cancer this past year. In celebration of her, I decided to put a team together for our city's Susan G. Komen's Race for the Cure which is being held this Saturday. I am excited to say we have 21 team participants including family and friends. We decided to do a play on words so our team name is "Creating Great Mammaries". So far we have raised about $1300. Just an update on my Mom, she had her last chemo treatment in March, and she is just about to finish her six weeks of radiation. As she says, she feels great from the waist up, however, she is struggling with tingling, numbness, and pain in her feet. She is having trouble walking and keeping her balance so she is currently using a cane. It's a common side effect from chemo, although her doctors have said it's rare to see it this bad. I love my mom of course, but I just want to say how much I admire her as a woman. She is so strong and I have never once heard her complain or ask "why me?" about this situation that has been dealt to her.

On the adoption front, referrals are very slow, in fact, we have a conference call with our agency next week to discuss the increased wait times. There have been a few referrals this month and we have now moved to number 6 on the unofficial list, however I am going to say 4 since two families in front of us are waiting for siblings. There was however, two long time waiting families that received sibling referrals this week. Great news for them since they have been waiting for almost 17 months.

No News

Another Mother's day has come and gone and we still don't have any news. Last Saturday marked our 13th month of waiting. We are number 8 on the unofficial waiting list, but when people ask I say we are holding at number 5 since three families ahead of us our waiting for siblings.

We have been doing what we can to stay busy. I started a team to walk in our local Susan G. Komen Race for the cure on May 30. Recruiting teammates and pledges has kept my mind off of our referral somewhat. Last Saturday we built a small deck for the front of our house. Tomorrow is our 8th wedding anniversary so we are going to the Brewer game which is something we both love to do. I've said it before and I will say it again, we are blessed to have wonderful families and friends that have been there to support us during this time. The wait was fairly easy for us up until we hit our 10-11 month mark. Now it's getting downright difficult.

A Year and Counting....

A couple of weeks ago we hit one year that we have been officially waiting for our referral. April 9, 2008 we got word from our agency that our all of our paper work was approved and we were officially put on the waiting list. At that time we thought our wait would be between 6-9 months. How things have changed. Our year "waitiversary" has passed, and it still seems like we have a ways to go. We are number 10 on the unofficial list, however, I say 7 as there are three families ahead of us waiting for siblings. Our social worker told us we are so close to our referral, it's just a matter of time before some infants come into care and are cleared for referral. Here is a great blog post called "The Weight of the Wait" written by another "waiting" mother. Please take the time to read it as she captures the essence of the "wait" so beautifully. http://www.mindful-mama.com/blogs/thrive/archive/2009/04/17/adoption-the-weight-of-the-wait.aspx