Crazy Hair

I dislike winter for a number of reasons. It's cold, the slushy/yucky stuff is messy, it's cold, it's not fun scraping windows, its cold, etc.... You get the point. But, another reason I don't like winter is because it's SO dry. And my hair is always staticy, it's so annoying. Well, Addy is having some issues too....

Tim and I drove up to Minneapolis this weekend for our nephew's dedication. It was a short trip, but a good trip. Here are a couple pictures.

Isn't he a stud?!

hi... i'm emry

haha... look at ava's face

tammie with her girls...

Update on the adoption...

~AGCI had a mix up and lost our referral paperwork, so we are re-doing it and sending it back in (no worries - it's not holding up our process... exhale - you can breathe again)

~AGCI is sending our travel packet this week - YAY!!

~We have a conference call with AGCI on Friday to discuss travel stuff - DOUBLE YAY!

~We are waiting to hear what our court date is... we are hoping for early March.

Hope you are having a non-staticy day!! :)

Bag 'O Love

We got the Bag 'O Love all ready to go tonight. Here is what we are sending...

~silky blanket (that we've been sleeping with so it smells like us)

~little teddy bear (that we've also been sleeping with)

~photo album

~little elephant toy

Really we just wanted to send the first three things, but we realized we had some extra room and well if you send over a bag with empty space then CLEARLY you aren't good parents - right??? So... the little elephant won the last open spot in the bag. Oh and we did include something else in the bag... KISSES! We blew lots and lots of kisses in the bag - one for everyday until we go and get him! Which for me right now is seeming for forEVAH!!

where it all came from & coupons!

Ok, well I know you all want to know where the cute stuff came from - so here we go.

The first 2 shirts are from http://www.africahopeapparel.org/. Go check out their site. They have some cool shirts for guys too - Tim got one. Then you get to pick the organization that you want the proceeds to go to. Most of the shirts are $20 - not bad folks...not bad.

Ok, then the Adoption Rocks T-shirt is from a fellow adopting family. So, you really should go to their site and buy a t-shirt to help them raise $ for their adoption. C'mon... just do it. It's so cute and you know you want to! http://onemomtrying.blogspot.com/

The clock is from Pottery Barn. And it's 50% off right now!! Only $24.99! Hurry up & go get one! http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/am350/index.cfm?pkey=xsrd0m1%7C12%7C%7C%7C1%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7Cafrica%20clock&cm%5Fsrc=SCH

The little pouch was found on Etsy, but I don't see it on there anymore. There is a business card that came with it and the ladies company is called Urban Hen and her email address is sharon@urbanhen.com. I'm sure you could email her and request one.

Then the charm is also from an Etsy site. They have quite a few cute things. I actually got one for my Mom too that says Sayt Ayat (Grandmother).
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=19877909

And for those who would like to have an Africa cookie cutter - you can buy it here.
http://www.coppergifts.com/productcart/pc/Africa_Cookie_Cutters_CG2119.asp

Okie dokie... that's about it. Super cute stuff and not bad prices either!

Speaking of prices... I am such a nerdy nerd when it comes to coupons. I love them! Seriously people - it's free money. Why would you NOT use them?! Last night I save $27.60 with coupons - LOVE it! I get so excited to see how much I can save in a trip. OH and if something is on sale and I have a coupon for it - oh my - I might just break out in a little dance in the aisle... just maybe.

My New Garage Door Service Company and some other fun stuff

So, I have decided that I should start my own garage door service company. Why you ask??? Well, let me explain. We had plans to go out with some friends tonight and we get in the car, pull out of the garage, push the button to close the garage door, garage door is not closing. Tim gets out to inspect what the problem is... he can't figure it out, so he decides to just close it manually - nope can't do that either - it's stuck. Ok.... now what? Well, Tim gets up on a ladder and finds that the cables are all twisted around this little wheel thingymajig. Clearly not something he can fix. He calls a place in the phonebook that has 24 hour service because our garage door is wide open and we can't leave the house with it open. They come out to fix it... would you like to know how much they charge PER hour? $168... yes, that's right. $168 per hour. No typo here folks. I am in the wrong business. So, I'm sure to be a millionaire soon after fixing a few garage doors on Saturday nights. It's robbery I'm telling ya.

Since we are not out with our friends... I'm at home blogging. Which has been on my to do list, but keeps getting pushed to the bottom. Update for everyone. Our paperwork is all sent in!! Woot woot!! It was kinda like sending in all of the dossier paperwork - felt so good to get it OUT of the house. We are now in waiting mode again. We should hear from AGCI in about 3 weeks with what our first court date is. Hoping for early March! IF we pass on the 1st time, then we could travel early April! :) We will be sending the bag 'o love to the little guy next week. I'll be sure to post pics of what we send.

Tim and I had a really fun night last night and we bought Jaxson clothes for the first time. Oh, it was SO much fun! You will all think I'm a big dork, but I actually had tears in my eyes. Because for once I wasn't buying clothes for my nieces or nephew, or cousins, or my friend's kids. I was buying clothes for MY son. Fun stuff. And good deals too because it was all on clearance.

I've been meaning to show you some of the fun stuff that I got for Christmas. So - here you go. If you want to know where any of it is from I can let you know.

Some T-Shirts


Ok, my adoption rocks tshirt is downstairs being washed, so I couldn't take a pic but this logo is on the front and it's cute.

Fun clock


Super Cute Pouch/Bag with Ethiopian Flag stitched on

charm that says "Mother" in Amharic

Cool stuff, huh?! I think so. I loved all of the thoughtful gifts!

Pray for Abby

A family that adopted through our agency needs prayers. Their 3 yr old daughter Abby was diagnosed with leukemia back in July and she's been fighting ever since. Tomorrow she starts a very aggressive treatment. Her survival rate is low... 20%. Please keep this family in your prayers.

Showered with Gifts!!

Today was our baby shower - let me just say.... WOW!!! I know I say this all the time, but we are so incredibly blessed. Blessed...blessed.... blessed. We were showered with so many wonderful gifts. We have everything we could possibly want or need and more. Only thing missing now is the little guy himself!!

I don't think I've posted what his name is and since it's on the cake I better tell you now before you see it! If his name was given by his birth family then we would have kept it, but that's not the case. So, we have decided to change his name (for several reasons). Jaxson Kyin is the name we've chosen. Kyin is an Ethiopian name and means long awaited child. So...kinda fitting - huh? So, now that we have that out of the way - here are some pictures from the shower.

My Grandma's...

My Mom...

My good friend Debra (she helped host the shower)

These cute little bags were sitting at everyone's seat. Inside was a bracelet made by women in Africa and the proceeds went to send children to school in Africa. Cool, huh?! My mom and my friend Sally made these cutie patootie bags (they match the nursery bedding)

Everyone also got one of these super cute & yummy cookies that my friend Lisa made.

Then there was a placemat at everyone's seat that had a very sweet poem typed on it. So precious... (warning - you will need kleenex)

KISSES IN THE WIND

I hold you in my heart and touch you in my dreams. You are here each day with me, at least that's how it seems.

I know you wonder where we are... what's taking us so long. But remember child, I love you so and God will keep you strong.

Now go outside and feel the breeze and let it touch your skin...Because tonight, just as always, I blow you kisses in the wind.

May God hold you in His hand until I can be with you. I promise you, my darling, I'm doing all that I can do.

Very soon, you'll have a family for real, not just pretend. But for tonight, just as always, I blow you kisses in the wind.

May God wrap you in His arms and hold you very tight. And let the angels bring the kisses that I send to you each night.

Ok - is that not the sweetest poem?! I LOVED IT!! Now go on and get your kleenex so you can finish reading this.

This was the cake that my friend Lisa made!! Isn't it cute?! Again in matches the bedding and she even wrote Amharic on the cake - very impressed!! And not only did it look awesome, but it tasted SOOOO good. It was some chocolately goodness with oreo filling. I promise you - the best cake you'll ever taste.


Can you see me in the sea of gifts?!

Oh just some of my best friends... this is Lisa, Sally and Sandy. They are WONDERFUL friends. I love them.

Ok, so I got A LOT of WONDERFUL gifts and if I could post pics of all of them I would, but the post would never end. So, I'll just share this one with you. My cousin got this cute hoodie for me. If you don't have your glasses on and can't read it, it says "There's nowhere on earth I wouldn't go to bring you home to me". I love it.

And here are all the gifts in our living room. YIKES! Baby Jaxson is taking over the house and he's not even here yet!! We aren't quite done in the nursery yet, so for now - this is where it's staying.

So, that was our FUN day!! It was so great, I loved every minute of it. Thank you to everyone for coming to celebrate with us and thank you for all the wonderful gifts you showered upon us. Jaxson has absolutely no idea how many people are waiting for him here and cannot wait to shower him with love! THANK YOU TO ALL MY AWESOME FAMILY & FRIENDS!! I love you!

Referral Packet

(Our little guy doesn't REALLY look like smiley face - I just had to cover it up so you couldn't see his cute little self)

We got our referral packet - woot woot!! I came home on my lunch hour and it was sitting nice and pretty inside the door. I tore it open to check out all the paperwork we have ahead of us. It's not too bad - I'll be speedy mcspeederson and get it all done and in!

I'm very excited for Saturday because we have a baby shower!! What a fun week, huh? Referral on Monday and a shower on Saturday!! :) The shower was obviously already planned, but perfect timing for sure! I'm so excited to see everyone and celebrate baby "P"!!

The GREATEST phone call!!!

Today was THE day!!! The phone call that we have been waiting for came!! It's a BOY!!! And a little itty bitty one!! He is about 8 weeks old and pretty small. He came to Hannah's Hope on 11/20/08 and weighed a whopping 5.7 lbs and was 20.5" long. Skinny little guy, but very healthy. It won't be long until HH plumps him right up! Ok, so let me tell you about the day!

Well, the day started off with little sleep. I was so anxious last night that I tossed all night long. I was convinced that we should be getting the call today and if not, well I was going to be VERY disappointed. Our caseworker Julie emailed all of the families this morning saying that AGCI was opened back up and they were playing catch-up, but that they would be calling all families this week with a monthly update and new #'s. Oh and she said I hope you had a great holiday... blah blah blah. So, I was wanting to email her SO bad and just say "ummm... so do you have some great news for us and will you be calling me TODAY?!" But, I figured that was a little too direct, so I emailed back and said "Thanks Julie. Looking forward to hearing from you soon!". Well, she emailed back and said "I look forward to talking to you too!". And then......... she put a smiley face!!! So, then the detective work began. She wouldn't put a smiley face if she didn't have good news, right? I mean - come on - you don't put a smiley face and then NOT call with a referral! I even emailed Jody to tell her that I got a smiley face!! So, anyway... the anxiety levels were high and productivity at work was LOW. It was my first day back to work in 2 weeks and it had to be the day that the agency opened back up and we were #1 on the list - ugh! So, friends and family all had their guesses in on what time the call would come today (if it came) and there were about 15 guesses and nobody got it spot on, but close! Dani -you guessed 3:43pm and Sandy I think you were 3:52pm and the call came at 3:47pm!! Ok, so anyways... I had a little heads up that the call would be coming since my lovely friend Jody emailed me while she was on the phone with Christy getting her referral!! Now Jody is behind me on the list, so I'm thinking "WHAT?!" Well, I knew that Christy was probably just a little ahead of the game then Julie, so I knew it was coming! I called Tim and he left work because he knew it was coming! I started packing up some of my stuff at my desk and then buzz buzz my phone was vibrating and it said "Julie - AGCI". I paused.... started BAWLING... then answered. Julie said she had some great news and I was just bawling. She said I have a little baby boy to tell you about - me, well I'm still bawling and couldn't even talk! She asked if I wanted more information or if I wanted to be with Tim for the info. I told her I wanted to be with Tim and I was leaving work and would call her in 15 minutes! All the while... still bawling!!! I told Julie I was sorry for crying, but I was just SOOOO happy!! So, some friends came by to see me run out the door and packed up my stuff for me and shut my computer off. And off I ran! I live like 8 minutes from work and while I'm on my way home Jody called to tell me about her referral and I told her I just got mine too!! Then when I got home Tim and I called Julie and of course she didn't answer, so we left a message and waited... waited... paced... waited. Then after 20 minutes I said screw this I'm calling her back again! So, we called and she answered! She said "I had a feeling it was you, I was just about to call you back". I said "yeah well we were just a tad impatient". She then told us all about him!! We have about 50 pictures of the little guy. Like I said he's small and he looks like a little old man - hehe. He's not smiling at all and is very serious!! Several people have asked us about his background and Tim and I aren't sure that we are going to share his information on how he ended up at HH. We feel like it's kinda private and not quite sure how we'll choose to share that info (if at all). But, it's sad... So, anyway...we've had a house full of people all night long, LOTS of emails and phone calls and text messages that I have not been able to respond to - Sorry!! After the last person left at 10:30pm, we just sat on the couch and tried to let it all sink in and oh yeah ate some supper. We are VERY happy!! How am I ever going to sleep tonight???

Here is a picture of Tim and I getting our first look at the little nugget!

And here is a picture of our fridge! lol. We've had these sheets up on the fridge since July and would cross off our #'s as they would go down.... felt SO good to cross off the #1!!!

Renee, Kristi & NellAnn - I hope you hear some good news soon!!!

And here comes the anxiety...

Going to start staring at my phone in 15 minutes when AGCI opens. AHHH!!! I can hardly stand it! I tossed and turned all night long. Oh I HOPE HOPE HOPE that today is THE day!!!

It was kinda nice to not have the phone attached to my hand over break and the crazy anxiety, but it's baaaaaaaaaaaack!!

VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!

Happy New Year!!! Tim and I are SO excited for what 2009 will bring. We have been waiting sooooooo long to be parents and this is our year!! Oh and AGCI opens in 3 days!!! I can hardly stand it!

Ok, so since we are so close on both lists (unofficially #1 and #2) I thought it would be fun to take a poll on if it's a boy or a girl. Let me just say that EVERYONE thinks it will be a boy and I mean everyone. All of our friends and family are all expecting a boy, so if it's a girl everyone will be in for a shock! I'll be thrilled either way! So, go on over to the right and vote! Go on... GO!!

Started the nursery!!

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a great Christmas!! We sure did. It was nice spending time with all of our family. We have lots of houses to hit on Christmas, so it gets a little crazy but it was great. Baby P even scored some nice gifts. Little toys, blankets, etc... It was nice that people remembered our baby this Christmas even though he/she isn't physically here. The baby is definitely in our hearts on our mind LOTS!!

Here's a picture of us with all of Tim's siblings and spouses. We're a pretty fun group if you ask me. They all came over to our house the day after Christmas and we had lots of laughs. We played some Rockband and even busted out the camcorder for a couple songs and my oh my... if I posted them - you would pee your pants laughing... no joke... you would. But, am I dumb enough to post a video of me singing Eye of the Tiger for the whole world to see?! NO!! So use your imagination! Our baby has NO idea how dorky his/her parents are... hahaha.

And here is a picture of all of our nieces & nephew. I can't wait for our baby to be in the picture!!

I've been keeping myself VERY busy - makes the time go faster. 6 more days until AGCI opens - woohoo!! So, some fun news to share.... my friend Jenna and I started painting the nursery tonight and it's looking good!! We only did one wall, but that one wall looks FANTABULOUS! We got a late start, so will have to finish later. The color looks good. My edges...not so good. Definitely going to have some touch-ups to do. I'm hoping to do some more painting tomorrow. Oh and Tim did a wonderful job "supervising"... ha. My goal is to have the room painted before I go back to work on the 5th. My mom is throwing a shower for me on the 10th, so need the room done so we have somewhere to put all the goodies!! Can't wait to post pics when the nursery is done.

Merry Christmas

So... no phone call. Boo. It stinks, but I know we are close. We didn't get a referral by Christmas like we'd hope, so now I'm aiming for one by Christmas in Ethiopia which is 1/7.

I did want to say CONGRATULATIONS to everyone who passed court - that's wonderful!! I'm so happy that you found out right away and didn't have to wait until the 5th. Now we all need to pray for Autumn's court date on the 3oth!!! She has waited much too long.

I hope you all have your shopping done, gifts wrapped, groceries bought, house cleaned, etc.. so that you can enjoy the next 2 days with your families!!

From our house to yours... Merry Christmas!!

45 hrs

In 45 hours it will be closing time for AGCI until Jan.5th. Almost 2 weeks of hearing nothing... that's going to stink. So, I'm praying so hard that we hear something in the next 45 hours! I know the chances of us getting a referral before Christmas is very slim, but I'm holding on to just an itty bitty ounce of hope for a Christmas miracle. What I wanted more than anything was to be a Mom this Christmas.

Saying prayers for all of you who have court dates this week!!

Snow Snow and More Snow

Well we got dumped on here in SE Wisconsin... and I mean dumped on. The snow started Thursday night and didn't stop until about noon on Friday. We got about 11 inches. Here is a picture of us opening the back door. Now, keep in mind that there is about a 7" step down and you can see how far the snow is above the door.

Here is a picture of Addy out with the snow. Poor Addy doesn't get the whole yard to run around in. We have to shovel a little circle for her to do her "business" in. And yes that is a little coat she has on. It gets very cold here in WI people! And she wears little fleece boots too otherwise she stands on 3 legs because her feet get so cold. She LOVES her boots and doesn't like going out without them. We don't have any kids, so yes she is our baby and we spoil her. I'm fully aware of that. And Addy is going to have some major issues when Baby P comes.

So we had our Profit Sharing Program at work on Friday despite the snow. Our President brought in the group Three Graces to sing for us. I had never heard of them before, but they were really good. I just got done downloading some of their songs onto my ipod. You should check them out. Alright, it's 1am and past my bedtime. Good Night.

Random Thoughts by Dawny P

So... I'm sure you are checking my blog to see if we've heard anything yet... NOPE! I don't have anything interesting or fun to blog about, so I'll just let you inside my brain for a few minutes. Here are my random thoughts swarming my head....

- I need to send out Christmas cards - no I did not take you off my list - I just haven't sent them yet.
- I need to get some little Christmas gifts for 9 co-workers. *sigh* what should I get?
- I need to get some laundry detergent. How come when Tim does laundry he pours like 1/2 a bottle of detergent in... ugh
- I'm watching Medical Incredible on tv right now and there is this woman with no legs scooting around her living room floor vacuuming. I have 2 legs and I don't vacuum.
- I've been on the hunt for the perfect little teddy bear for the baby. My mom finally found one - the hospital gift shop of all places - it had a dorky little tshirt on it, so we just took that off. I want to send the bear over after we get our referral, but I want it to smell like us, so I'm starting to sleep with it everynight. :)
- I have 7 mos to lose about 30 lbs. I'm in a wedding in July. The bridesmaid dress is very pretty. Not so pretty on me though. Gotta get to work.
- How am I ever going to lose weight around the holidays?! I ate out for lunch today for a celebration lunch thingy with work. I am eating out tomorrow night for a family dinner thing, eating out for lunch on Wednesday with some friends at work, going out on Wednesday night for a holiday dinner/gift exchange with 3 of my very good friends... Oh man....
- What am I going to wear on Friday to the Profit Sharing Program (Christmas program type thing that work does every year - its a dressy occasion)
- Need to get a birthday gift for my friend by Thursday
- Why do I live in WI when it's so stinking cold?
- I need to bring an appetizer to work on Thursday for a potluck lunch
- Need to go shopping for baby gifts for a co-worker to give her on Thursday
- Autumn was right... being #1 is not all it's cracked up to be... I already have anxiety sometimes and I am constantly anticipating a call. Not fun. I mean I'm glad I'm #1, but just very worried that it won't happen before Christmas. I will be very sad if that's the case.
- I need to finish up my Christmas shopping
- I'm so thankful that my work gives us off from the 19th to the 5th!! Thank you SCJ!
- I always read blogs that say how much people struggle with keeping the house clean and doing laundry now with their 3rd, 4th, etc child... I have NO kids and I already can't keep up. How am I going to keep up when the baby comes?
- I'm so happy that I met my buddy Jody!! We've become great friends and I REALLY hope we get to travel together!!
- I really miss our friends in Australia and wish they were going to be here for Christmas.
- I really hate it when I'm driving and the person in the car next to me or in front of me is smoking and the smell of their cigarette smoke gets in my car through the vents. That's so gross and I don't like it.
- I made some chocolate peanut butter bars tonight - they are really really good

Ok, thats what's going on in my noggin right now... As much as being #1 is stressful, I think being #1 right now around the holidays is pretty cool. I'm super busy at work and at home, but there's not a minute that goes by that I don't think about the child that I love more than anything that's on the other side of the world right now. So, I'll just continue to hope and pray that we receive a wonderful phone call this week!

Merry Christmas

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Waiting Sucks

Waiting sucks. That pretty much sums up how I feel. I was SO super excited about the thought that we might be #1 last week. Now that it's been a week, I'm feeling antsy. I find that I'm just drained at the end of the day. I find myself ALWAYS anticipating the call. If I walk to the water cooler without my phone I freak out and run back to my desk to see if I missed THE CALL. Nope. About every 20 minutes I look down at my phone - just make sure it's on... make sure I have several bars... yep it's all good - why wouldn't it be. It's always fine... but I just have to check a gazillion times... just in case. Everytime I do anything I think "oh I wonder if I'll get the call in this meeting...or I wonder if I'll get the call while eating lunch with friends today... or I wonder if the phone will ring while I'm going to the bathroom (seriously that's probably when it will happen - my luck it will and YES I will answer!!)... or I wonder if it will happen while I'm driving home from work..etc...etc...etc". I also find myself thinking of our child A LOT. Julie said that there are babies at HH - just waiting on paperwork to get processed. So, I'm pretty sure our child is there. So, I wonder what they are doing... are they in a swing, are one of the special mothers holding them, are they sitting outside watching the older kids play, what's their birth mother doing, etc.... These questions run through my mind all the time. So... I guess I'll continue to just sit and think and daydream... what else am I going to do?

We went to dinner with my cousin & his wife tonight. Today was her due date, but no baby. I was hoping for some action during dinner, but that didn't happen. I said "what would you do if your water broke RIGHT here at Olive Garden!!??" She just looked at me like "uhhh not cool". They asked Tim and I to be the Godparents of their little baby boy that should be coming soon. So, we of course were very honored. I'm so thankful that we have lots of babies in our family - our baby will have lots of cousins his/her age. On our way home from dinner my parents called and said that they were going to stop by to pick up a book...well surprise surprise they brought over the crib that we wanted!! :) WOOHOO!!! I think they are trying to give us a hint to get working on that nursery. Yes, we've been slacking. But we are never home! I'll be off from the 19th to the 5th though, so I'm hoping to make some serious progress. I have lots of ideas swirling in my head, so can't wait to get started. Thanks Mom & Dad - we love you!!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

Tim and I went to an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party last night and oh man were there a lot of ugly sweaters!

Like our sweaters? Whoever made my sweatshirt was obviously torn and did not know what to do so just did it ALL - whole lotta everything going on! I also have some blinking earrings on, but you can't see those.

We also had a white elephant gift exchange. These are the lovely gifts that Tim and I came home with. Don't ask me what this first thing is - it's one of the strangest/ugliest things I have ever seen! It's a ceramic dog with a furry tail - that's just wrong.




Our little niece Emry was dedicated this morning, so I took a few pictures. Seriously - are they not the cutest red heads ever?!?!

Well...we do know that we are #2 for a girl and there is a very good chance that we are #1 for a boy. We are SO very excited!! Tim wanted to avoid the #1 spot all together and just get a referral before we had a chance to know that we were #1. I'm just thrilled right now, however I'm sure that won't last long. Those that know me know that patience is not one of my strengths. I would LOVE to get a referral by Christmas and Julie said she would hope we would too, but to be prepared just in case that doesn't happen. Well, I'm just pretending like she didn't say that second part. If we are #1 going into Christmas I think I will go crazy. Let's hope for another exciting week of referrals!!!

Could it be?!?!?!

Yeah - that look has been plastered on my face for the past 5 hrs!!! There is a chance that we could be #1 and #2 !! YES PEOPLE - #1 AND #2!! I am freaking out (in a good way)!!! Now, I don't know for sure... but reason to believe... and well Erin thinks so too! :) I haven't gotten our # update yet this week, so I should be hearing from Julie tomorrow. Wouldn't it be nice if she called me with a referral though instead of a #?!?! It would be so nice to not have to sit at that #1 spot long, but I'm just thankful to possibly be at the #1 spot... so no complaints here! I'm sure I won't be sleeping much tonight!

Congrats to all those who received referrals!

WAHOO!!!!!!!!!!

blah

This is what I look like right now. Sneezing, eyes watering, nose running CONSTANTLY, etc etc... BLAH! I couldn't help but think... what if Julie from AGCI calls today and I'm so out of it from my cold medicine and ambien (oh ambien I love you) that I don't hear the phone?! I'm going to sleep with the phone next to my ear!

Dozing off to benadryl....

Thankful

I was tagged by my bloggin buddy Margaret to post 5 things that I'm thankful for.

1. I'm so thankful for adoption. We are loving this journey and feel fortunate to be able to start a family this way. I'd be even more thankful if we'd get a referral call SOON!!! :)

2. My husband. Tim is wonderful....he loves me very much and I know I don't tell him enough how much I appreciate him. I love you Tim!

3. My family & friends. They support us in everything we do and are always there for us. Plus they are fun and just awesome....I love them so much.

4. For the birthmother of our child... for the most unselfish decision that she is going to make. We are forever grateful.

5. I'm thankful that Tim and I both don't need to worry about losing our jobs in this stinky economy. Everyday I'm hearing of more and more companies laying people off and I think I often take it for granted that we don't have to worry about that. So, I'm thankful for our job security!

I hope you all had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving!!! I know we did - I got to spend lots of time loving up my nieces and nephew. Oh and the gravy I made today was pretty much amazing if I may so myself!! I know several of you have all done posts on what you are thankful for, so if you haven't yet - consider yourself tagged!

Turning that frown upside down!

I was SOOO happy that there were 2 more referrals given out today - YAY!! That puts us at...

AND

I have now officially set a different ringtone for when the agency calls. I chose "More than Anyone" by Gavin DeGraw. It is my FAVORITE song!!! Now, I just hope I don't get any false alarms from them! Hopefully we'll get an email next week instead of a phone call for our number update! Congrats Sunday & Kristi!!!

Barbados...I miss you

Well, I haven't posted in quite awhile now. I guess I didn't have much to post about - pretty quiet on the referral front (besides my bloggin buddy Erin - wohoo!!). That puts us at #5 and #8. I have to admit that the wait is getting hard. Really hard. I am glued to the computer everyday in hopes of hearing of some referrals. We are longing to know if it's going to be a girl or a boy... an itty bitty thing or a little chunk... it's so hard not to know. It's been 4 months, 2 weeks and 3 days on the wait list... but who's counting. However, we are very excited that more families got their travel calls and will be going over in a few weeks!!

Since I woke up this morning to yucky snow, I thought I would take a little trip down memory lane to one year ago today. This is what I was doing.....

Last year at this time was tough. Tim and I were not in a good place. It was clear that we would be spending another Christmas without a child. The infertility stuff was really wearing on us and we needed to escape. So, what better to do than to go on a 10 day cruise?!?! It was AMAZING!! It was exactly what we needed. We needed to get away from our everyday life, doctors, cell phones, tv, etc etc... It was soooooooo nice. And oh do I miss Barbados....

Tagged

Ok, I've been tagged by Amy... so here it is folks. I'm supposed to take the 4th picture out of the 4th folder on my computer and tell you about it.

This is a picture of 2 of my nieces - Bayli & Ava catching some sun on our patio this summer. Oh do I miss summer and my flip flops. You can't see their faces, but trust me - they are the cutest redheads you ever did see. I promise!!

I'm SO very happy because I took tomorrow off - WAHOO!!! And what am I doing? Oh nothing. Sleeping in and just catching up on housework. We've been so busy lately and I've gotten so behind in the housework, so I need a day to just catch up. It's kind of sad to look forward to a day of cleaning....lame-O!!!

Ok, now I need to tag others. I have no idea who has been tagged. So, if you were already tagged - sorry. Let's go with Jody, Kristi, Erin, Kristin and Karen. And I have no idea how you other girls link the names to the blogs. Someone needs to tell me how to do that.

Bizarre Foods in Ethiopia

Have you ever seen the show Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel? I've never seen it, but I saw a commercial for it and I set the tivo to record it. Tomorrow night Andrew Zimmern is in Ethiopia experiencing Bizarre Foods. Just thought you all might want to check it out. He goes to a few different villages and cities and one of them is Addis Ababa. Check it out!!

YES

Are you a "yes" person? I'm a YES person...completely. I never say no. It's definitely an issue I have, but I just can't stop. I have a very hard time saying no to anyone. Why am I that way? I have no idea. I guess I'm afraid to disappoint people. Whether it's someone at work asking for help, or a friend asking me to go to dinner, or an invitation to a party, or a family member asking me to watch my nieces, etc etc etc... you name the circumstance... I can't say no. Now it's almost always something I do want to do or help with, but I have a hard time fitting everything in. I've been very overwhelmed lately - the social calendar has been a little out of control. So, I'm trying my best to pull back a bit and give myself more time for ME. If anyone has any advice out there on how to say "no" nicely... I'm listening. I wish I could just be ok with saying "I'd love to, but I can't". I think it, but I just can't say it. Ok, well thanks for listening to my rambling post about nothing.

P.S. No I have not received new #'s from AGCI yet. But, I'm not too concerned seeing as I know what our #'s are. Oh and waiting sucks...as if you didn't already know. I'm not a patient person - at ALL.

Halloween Party

Tim and I went to a little Halloween Party on Saturday. Tim came up with the great idea of being Michael Phelps & his mom Debbie. So... introducing...Michael & Debbie Phelps...