Saturday, June 9, 2012
It's Been A Year!
Yep, it's been a year since Desmond came home from Korea. Sometimes it seems like yesterday, like when he is all happy and giggly and I can't believe it's only been a year. And then other times it seems as if we have had him for.ev.er, like when he is throwing tantrum number 20 and it's only 7am and I think to myself: "I can't believe I'be been putting up with your tantrums for a whole year!".
I was lurking around the adoption forum and I ran across a family that has recently brought home a little boy of their own from Korea. She mentioned that from day one her kiddo called her "Omma", which is "Mommy" in Korean. I got to thinking about it and Desmond hasn't really ever called me anything. I call myself "Mama", like: "Mama wants you to obey", but he doesn't call me that. When he first came home he would call out in the middle of the night for his foster mom: "Omma! Omma!". I would respond and then he would look at me like: "You ain't my mama lady!". After awhile though he did accept my comfort and came to tolerate me, then like me. Now I can't get him to leave me alone! :) Should you ask Desmond who is mother is he will point to me, but he won't say "Mama". Everyday when Michael gets home from work he will run to the window and shout: "Dad! Dad!" He gets really excited when dad comes home. To my knowledge he doesn't do that when I get home from the grocery store, usually he follows me into the kitchen screaming: "YUM YUM!"
I can only recall two times when Desmond has actually said "Mama". The first time was when I had just put him into timeout, yep he screamed "Mama" in anger. It was kind of funny, I chuckled. The other time he said "Mama" was just a few weeks ago when he got in trouble for something and Dad took away his applejuice. He tried to plead his case to me, as if I was going to go get his applejuice back. Both Michael and I laughed at that one too, that kid is just so darn cute even when his crying.
When Desmond had his heart surgery and was coming around right after the surgery the nurse told me he was calling for me. We got into the the room and he was moaning "Omma, Omma". I told the nurse that he wasn't calling for me, he was calling for his foster mom back in Korea. I think the nurse immediately started crying. I wasn't hurt by the fact that he wanted the woman who raised from 3 months till 17 months of age, she nursed him after his first surgery and took him to all his doctor appointments. I am also not hurt that he doesn't call me anything, he has never really needed to. I am with him for the most part 24 hours a day 7 days a week. I am always nearby and all he has to do to get my attention is come up to me tell me what he wants. I feed him, cuddle him, take care of him, let him fall asleep in my arms prior to nap time, rock him for 30 minutes!! before bed, hold him when he is hurting, take him to the splash park because he loves it even though I hate the summer heat, let him have two peices of cake at Sunday dinner, drive the grocery cart all crazy because it cracks him up, let him climb all over those big red concrete balls outside of Target while everyone is staring because the moment we pull into the parking lot he is yelling excitedly: "A ball! A ball", let him watch Elmo's World a lot!, get up in the middle of the night when he cries just to make sure he isn't cold, take him to the doctor for the bazillionth time. I do all those things because he is my son and I am his mother. He doesn't need to call me "Mama" because I am his mom and he knows it and that is all that matters.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Hearts and Hospitals
First off I want to thank everyone for praying Desmond this week! For those of you who do not know today Desmond had to go to the hospital for the cardiologist to get a better look at his heart. Last month we went to the cardiologist to get his heart checked out. When he was about 3 weeks old he had surgery for ASD (typical hole in the heart that closes up in newborns, his did not close up) and CoA (narrowing of the aorta). While this surgery went well, it just wasn't good enough. Today they did a catheterization to look at the narrowing of the aorta.
His procedure was supposed to be at noon, however we had to wait for all of his blood work to come back and he didn't go in until 1:30. Thankfully he fell asleep before he realized he hadn't anything to eat or drink for 7 hours.
The actual procedure went well, it took about 3 hours. After it was all done we had a pow-wow with the doctor. He let us know that Desmond has two options: to put in a stint, then when Desmond grows more put in another, then another, then another and so on, or surgery again. We are opting for surgery again, which will need to be scheduled in the next 6 to 8 weeks.
Right now we are just hanging out in the room trying not to move for the next hour and a half. It's not going all that well :(. Hopefully he will be still and then he can get up and walk around. What I would really like is for him to go to sleep, hopefully soon...
His procedure was supposed to be at noon, however we had to wait for all of his blood work to come back and he didn't go in until 1:30. Thankfully he fell asleep before he realized he hadn't anything to eat or drink for 7 hours.
The actual procedure went well, it took about 3 hours. After it was all done we had a pow-wow with the doctor. He let us know that Desmond has two options: to put in a stint, then when Desmond grows more put in another, then another, then another and so on, or surgery again. We are opting for surgery again, which will need to be scheduled in the next 6 to 8 weeks.
Right now we are just hanging out in the room trying not to move for the next hour and a half. It's not going all that well :(. Hopefully he will be still and then he can get up and walk around. What I would really like is for him to go to sleep, hopefully soon...
Saturday, July 16, 2011
One Month Home
One month home and Desmond is a mostly happy guy.
One month home and two ear infections later we are finally getting into a routine.
One month home and my husband is back at work and I am home full time with Desmond.
One month home and I have yet to finish writing thank you notes for the all the wonderful people who have helped us out with the adoption.
One month home and Desmond is still not walking! He takes about 4 steps and then either gets unsure of himself or realizes he get where he needs to go faster if he crawls.
One month home and melt downs only seem to happen about once a day.
One month home and Desmond is sleeping in his own room.
One month home and we have had some unexpected car expenses, which means I have to find a part time job sooner than expected.
One month home and I filled out my first job application in over 6 years, for some reason I can't seem to remember how much money I made at all my previous jobs going back farther than 6 years; I used to know this stuff!
One month home and I really hope I get one of the two part-time jobs I have applied for (Please pray that I get one of them they are both something that I would like to do and both have perfect hours for our family.)
One month home and my family comes next week to meet Desmond!!
One month home and my husband and I are going to go out on a date sometime when my family is here, I think I'm more excited about this than my family actually coming to visit...shhh...don't tell them though.
One month home and Desmond doesn't get up until 8am!! Seriously this is fantastic!
One month home and Desmond lets me enjoy at least 2 cups of coffee every morning while he plays quietly.
One month home and Desmond loves music and loves to dance. At this exact moment he is pounding out some original compositions on the piano.
One month home and I refuse to take Desmond back to the splash park by myself until he is walking! He insists that I take his hand and walk him all through the fountains and water, it gets old after about 10 minutes and then there is a melt down and it's time to go.
One month home and I purchased a blow up pool for the back yard that is much better than dragging him all the way to the splash park (at least for me).
One month home and Desmond loves hanging out in the church nursery! Of course they have way cooler toys than at home!
One month home and the English words Desmond is saying are: meow, mama or mom, Michael (totally refuses to call him dada, I think it's because I call my husband by his first name all the time.), Desmond, what, amen.
One month home and Desmond knows where his belly button is. He also knows where his nose, toes, eyes and ears are but he pretends he doesn't.
One month home and we are a family of 3, plus 2 cats.
One month home today.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Home!
Desmond has been home almost a week. I can't believe how fast time flies, it seems like just yesterday we were starting this process. I think back to a year ago and we weren't even considering having children let alone adopting one from halfway around the world. This past week has been very trying, I will not lie. Let me tell you about the week...
Last Tuesday I set off from my hotel in Seoul for the agency offices in Korea. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to get there. I was carrying two big bags, one was filled with gifts for Desmond's foster family, the other was filled with donations for the agency. My appointment to meet Desmond was at 1:30pm and I wasn't sure how far the office was from the subway stop. I arrived at the office at 1:10pm.
I took the elevator to the second floor and met with social worker, she said that he and his foster mother were already there. Gulp! Already? I wasn't ready, I could still turn around right?
Here is the face the greeted me when I walked into the room.
He was all smiles and he started to feed me some cereal. His foster mother noted that he never is that happy around strangers. I honestly can't really tell you what I was feeling. I am generally a non-emotional person and during highly emotional situations, like this one, I just shut down completely and show absolutely no emotion whatsoever. I'm sure his foster mother thought I was a strange person!
After a few minutes talking about Desmond and asking about his schedule, eating habits, favorite foods, comfort items we left to head downstairs to see the doctor. The doctor was busy and we had to wait in the waiting area. During this time he let me hold him for a few minutes. He also got to ride on a little bike and did not want get off of it when the doctor was ready. He started screaming bloody murder when he was forced off of it. His foster mother leaned over and said: "Oh yeah, he has a temper." Ummm...yep he does.
He was checked out by the doctor and I was given a piece of paper to sign. This was it, once I signed that piece of paper we were now responsible for him. I actually hesitated, so much so the social worker pointed out again where to sign. I signed it. That was it. There was a flurry of activity to get him strapped to me in the carrier and to flag down a taxi for me. In the meantime he was crying and screaming, his foster mother was crying hugging me and him, and I just stood there numb.
The cab came, good thing it was an older friendly fellow who tried his hardest to get Desmond to stop crying. I was back at the hotel by 2:10pm, it happened all so fast. Desmond ended up crying himself to sleep and slept for about 2 hours. This was a blessing for me. I could just sit for a little bit and digest what just happened. I just became a mother.
While in Korea Desmond and I just hung out together in the hotel room and got to know each other a little bit. This was a good thing because I could get a sense of when he was tired and about ready to have a melt down. On Thursday of last week we packed up and headed to the airport. (Yes, I did handle all of that stuff by myself with a kid.)
The plane ride wasn't that bad, but I am glad it is over with. He slept for 5 hours woke up and screamed for about an hour, stared off into space for another hour then slept for another 4. I was so thankful that he slept so much. I have heard horror stories from other adoptive parents that their children literally screamed the entire time!
These first few days have been rough, there have been times that I've doubted our decision. Especially last Friday and Saturday when he cried non-stop for about 24 hours. Part of it was grieving and part of it was a double ear infection we didn't realize he had. We are new to this parent thing. Besides he didn't show any signs of being sick, no fever, no tugging at his ears. And to top it off we were told to expect fits of crying because of the grieving. In hindsight we probably should've gone to the ER.
Yesterday my husband came into the playroom where I was trying to get Desmond to stop crying and play. He said: "When he is 17 he is so going to hear about his non-stop screaming." I said: "Please can he be 17 now?!" As I thought about this statement I had not only just wished my son's life away but I wished away all the memories we can have together. Today I thought that I don't want to wish away my child's life because now is the time instill values, teach him right and wrong, if we miss these times then we've totally missed the point of parenting and instructing a child. Do I wish that he had not cried those first few days? Of course, but I needed those first days of crying to learn more about being a mom and to learn more about my son.
Both my husband and I know adopting Desmond was/is what God wants for us and our family. By doubting that I am doubting God. His plan is perfect and I want to be in the center of His plan. Everyday will get a little better and everyday is better when we are in the center of God's will.
Last Tuesday I set off from my hotel in Seoul for the agency offices in Korea. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to get there. I was carrying two big bags, one was filled with gifts for Desmond's foster family, the other was filled with donations for the agency. My appointment to meet Desmond was at 1:30pm and I wasn't sure how far the office was from the subway stop. I arrived at the office at 1:10pm.
I took the elevator to the second floor and met with social worker, she said that he and his foster mother were already there. Gulp! Already? I wasn't ready, I could still turn around right?
Here is the face the greeted me when I walked into the room.
He was all smiles and he started to feed me some cereal. His foster mother noted that he never is that happy around strangers. I honestly can't really tell you what I was feeling. I am generally a non-emotional person and during highly emotional situations, like this one, I just shut down completely and show absolutely no emotion whatsoever. I'm sure his foster mother thought I was a strange person!
After a few minutes talking about Desmond and asking about his schedule, eating habits, favorite foods, comfort items we left to head downstairs to see the doctor. The doctor was busy and we had to wait in the waiting area. During this time he let me hold him for a few minutes. He also got to ride on a little bike and did not want get off of it when the doctor was ready. He started screaming bloody murder when he was forced off of it. His foster mother leaned over and said: "Oh yeah, he has a temper." Ummm...yep he does.
He was checked out by the doctor and I was given a piece of paper to sign. This was it, once I signed that piece of paper we were now responsible for him. I actually hesitated, so much so the social worker pointed out again where to sign. I signed it. That was it. There was a flurry of activity to get him strapped to me in the carrier and to flag down a taxi for me. In the meantime he was crying and screaming, his foster mother was crying hugging me and him, and I just stood there numb.
The cab came, good thing it was an older friendly fellow who tried his hardest to get Desmond to stop crying. I was back at the hotel by 2:10pm, it happened all so fast. Desmond ended up crying himself to sleep and slept for about 2 hours. This was a blessing for me. I could just sit for a little bit and digest what just happened. I just became a mother.
While in Korea Desmond and I just hung out together in the hotel room and got to know each other a little bit. This was a good thing because I could get a sense of when he was tired and about ready to have a melt down. On Thursday of last week we packed up and headed to the airport. (Yes, I did handle all of that stuff by myself with a kid.)
The plane ride wasn't that bad, but I am glad it is over with. He slept for 5 hours woke up and screamed for about an hour, stared off into space for another hour then slept for another 4. I was so thankful that he slept so much. I have heard horror stories from other adoptive parents that their children literally screamed the entire time!
These first few days have been rough, there have been times that I've doubted our decision. Especially last Friday and Saturday when he cried non-stop for about 24 hours. Part of it was grieving and part of it was a double ear infection we didn't realize he had. We are new to this parent thing. Besides he didn't show any signs of being sick, no fever, no tugging at his ears. And to top it off we were told to expect fits of crying because of the grieving. In hindsight we probably should've gone to the ER.
Yesterday my husband came into the playroom where I was trying to get Desmond to stop crying and play. He said: "When he is 17 he is so going to hear about his non-stop screaming." I said: "Please can he be 17 now?!" As I thought about this statement I had not only just wished my son's life away but I wished away all the memories we can have together. Today I thought that I don't want to wish away my child's life because now is the time instill values, teach him right and wrong, if we miss these times then we've totally missed the point of parenting and instructing a child. Do I wish that he had not cried those first few days? Of course, but I needed those first days of crying to learn more about being a mom and to learn more about my son.
Both my husband and I know adopting Desmond was/is what God wants for us and our family. By doubting that I am doubting God. His plan is perfect and I want to be in the center of His plan. Everyday will get a little better and everyday is better when we are in the center of God's will.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Ch-Ch-Changes...
There are so many changes going on in our lives right now. Yesterday was my last day of full-time work. I actually had never thought that I would leave my job. I love my job. I love working with the people in the office. There was never a time when I really didn't want to go to work. I had been there for 6 1/2 years, not my longest tenure at a job, but it was by far one of my better jobs.
Now I am going to be a stay at home mom. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this, not even sure if I am completely ready to be a mom. I am really hoping some maternal instincts kick in soon! I'm sure that when I finally get to meet our son, there will be some motherly feelings. It's hard when all you have is a picture to love. When one is pregnant they can feel their baby growing inside them, it's there with them always. Not the case in adoption. But that's okay by us, this is the path we have chosen to grow our family and I'm sure once he is in our arms we will know 100% that we have made the best decision.
I am currently in the process of getting the house ready and baby proofed. It's hard to think like a 18 month old and try to figure out what will be enticing to play with. His room is almost ready. There are still a few things that I would like to get done in it to make it feel more like his room.
We really don't have much time to get things done, so it is a good thing yesterday was my last day at work because I am leaving for Korea in just 6 short days. It still kind of seems surreal, like it's not really happening or I feel like it's still some months away in the future. Soooo not the case!
God has blessed us with a few extraordinary things in the past couple of weeks. First off, I'm pretty confident that our adoption is paid for! We are still waiting for some money to come in that was offered to us by some very generous people, but with that money we will be able to finish paying off the fee! Also, we received a grant from an organization that helps families who are adopting children with special needs. What was great about this is that our agency applied on our behalf and we didn't even need to lift a finger! This was great news since we had already been turned down for a couple of grants that we had applied for.
Another blessing is that my husband seems to have more vacation time than what we previously thought. His employer is changing insurance carriers and they had a meeting with the employees to discuss the change. In the packet of info was an overview of all the benefits the employees can receive. Both him and I noticed that he was not accruing as much vacation as he should be. I went back and checked his pay stubs and noticed he was accruing vacation as if he was still working in his 6th year...he is in his 12th. So as to not bore you with all the math, my husband now has an extra 16 days of vacation! That's 3 weeks! He is now able to spend a little bit more time at home when I get back from Korea. We are super excited about this as we were just planning on him taking that time off without pay. God's timing is just so perfect! I'm getting all teary-eyed just thinking about how wonderful God is!
I'll be sure to post more about my trip to Korea to meet/pick up our son.
Now I am going to be a stay at home mom. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this, not even sure if I am completely ready to be a mom. I am really hoping some maternal instincts kick in soon! I'm sure that when I finally get to meet our son, there will be some motherly feelings. It's hard when all you have is a picture to love. When one is pregnant they can feel their baby growing inside them, it's there with them always. Not the case in adoption. But that's okay by us, this is the path we have chosen to grow our family and I'm sure once he is in our arms we will know 100% that we have made the best decision.
I am currently in the process of getting the house ready and baby proofed. It's hard to think like a 18 month old and try to figure out what will be enticing to play with. His room is almost ready. There are still a few things that I would like to get done in it to make it feel more like his room.
We really don't have much time to get things done, so it is a good thing yesterday was my last day at work because I am leaving for Korea in just 6 short days. It still kind of seems surreal, like it's not really happening or I feel like it's still some months away in the future. Soooo not the case!
God has blessed us with a few extraordinary things in the past couple of weeks. First off, I'm pretty confident that our adoption is paid for! We are still waiting for some money to come in that was offered to us by some very generous people, but with that money we will be able to finish paying off the fee! Also, we received a grant from an organization that helps families who are adopting children with special needs. What was great about this is that our agency applied on our behalf and we didn't even need to lift a finger! This was great news since we had already been turned down for a couple of grants that we had applied for.
Another blessing is that my husband seems to have more vacation time than what we previously thought. His employer is changing insurance carriers and they had a meeting with the employees to discuss the change. In the packet of info was an overview of all the benefits the employees can receive. Both him and I noticed that he was not accruing as much vacation as he should be. I went back and checked his pay stubs and noticed he was accruing vacation as if he was still working in his 6th year...he is in his 12th. So as to not bore you with all the math, my husband now has an extra 16 days of vacation! That's 3 weeks! He is now able to spend a little bit more time at home when I get back from Korea. We are super excited about this as we were just planning on him taking that time off without pay. God's timing is just so perfect! I'm getting all teary-eyed just thinking about how wonderful God is!
I'll be sure to post more about my trip to Korea to meet/pick up our son.
Monday, May 9, 2011
God is Good!
This past Saturday was the fundraiser for Desmond. My husband and I didn't quite know what to expect. All week long our friends from church kept e-mailing and texting me with items that were being donated for the silent auction. All week long we were amazed by the outpouring of generosity from complete strangers. I think we were most concerned about the turn out. We knew that we would be there, my sister, my mom and my niece made the trip from Colorado. Then we knew my husband's family would be there, our friends from church and a few other stragglers. So, we knew we would have at least 30 people there :). Saturday came and I was kind of anxious. I asked my husband how he felt and his response: "Fine, why do you ask?" "You aren't nervous or anything?" "No, why would I be?" Men are just so calm sometimes!
Why did I worry? We had over a hundred people attend the event! There were people there we had never met before! At the end of the night we were exhausted, but we had a great time! I was excited to meet new people and felt that God was at work the entire time.
So are you ready for the unofficial total? I know there is still some money trickling in from people who could not be there, but I think this is a somewhat accurate total...$3658!!! How fantastic is that? We now just have to come up with just under $12,000 before July! Although this seems to be a huge amount, we know that God has things under control!
I wanted to publicly thank everyone for helping with this fundraiser. A special thank you to Melissa Karas and Jessica Philips for organizing the whole event! I also wanted to thank our church! We go to a wonderful church with wonderful people who have such a heart for adoption. We are amazed and in awe of how God is working through people in our church. Thank you to everyone who donated items and thank you to those who purchased those items.
One funny thing that happened...The centerpieces for the tables during the event were goldfish, which I happen to think is an excellent idea. Well there seemed to be an over abundance of goldfish leftover even after making an announcement that whomever wanted one could take one, or several. After everything was cleaned up for the night 34 goldfish managed to make it into our car. My mom said that she would just take them and flush them if we didn't want them. As a lover of animals I just couldn't bring myself to let her. We got home late that night, I just happened to have two aquariums, I got one out and just dumped them in there and left them for the night. Seeing as how I didn't have any fish food on hand there were four casualties the next morning. After church on Sunday we stopped by the store and got some food. There are now approx. 30 happy goldfish in our larger aquarium. So now we have 33 pets in our home. At least the goldfish do not shed!
Why did I worry? We had over a hundred people attend the event! There were people there we had never met before! At the end of the night we were exhausted, but we had a great time! I was excited to meet new people and felt that God was at work the entire time.
So are you ready for the unofficial total? I know there is still some money trickling in from people who could not be there, but I think this is a somewhat accurate total...$3658!!! How fantastic is that? We now just have to come up with just under $12,000 before July! Although this seems to be a huge amount, we know that God has things under control!
I wanted to publicly thank everyone for helping with this fundraiser. A special thank you to Melissa Karas and Jessica Philips for organizing the whole event! I also wanted to thank our church! We go to a wonderful church with wonderful people who have such a heart for adoption. We are amazed and in awe of how God is working through people in our church. Thank you to everyone who donated items and thank you to those who purchased those items.
One funny thing that happened...The centerpieces for the tables during the event were goldfish, which I happen to think is an excellent idea. Well there seemed to be an over abundance of goldfish leftover even after making an announcement that whomever wanted one could take one, or several. After everything was cleaned up for the night 34 goldfish managed to make it into our car. My mom said that she would just take them and flush them if we didn't want them. As a lover of animals I just couldn't bring myself to let her. We got home late that night, I just happened to have two aquariums, I got one out and just dumped them in there and left them for the night. Seeing as how I didn't have any fish food on hand there were four casualties the next morning. After church on Sunday we stopped by the store and got some food. There are now approx. 30 happy goldfish in our larger aquarium. So now we have 33 pets in our home. At least the goldfish do not shed!
Friday, April 22, 2011
More Good News!
The good news just keeps on coming! Desmond's Emigration Permit (EP) has been submitted to the Ministry of Health and Welfare in Korea. This is a HUGE step in the process. Basically this is the piece of paper that says he can leave Korea. Just so you know how big this is, every year the Ministry of Health and Welfare only issues a certain number of EPs each year. Last year agencies were running out of them starting in June. Each year the Ministry lowers the number of EPs that they issue, so there will less EPs issued than last year. Most families get word from their agency towards the middle of the month if their child has been submitted for an EP. However, this month it seemed like no one was getting notified if they were being submitted. There was a lot of talk out there on the adoption bulletin boards that maybe, just maybe, agencies were beginning to run out of EPs. I was just a bit worried because well, I'm quitting my job in June and to not have an EP this year would mean that we wouldn't be able to bring Desmond home until next year. But very quickly I was reminded that God is in control. He has a perfect plan for our lives. So the thought was put out of my mind.
Imagine my surprise when I opened up my e-mail yesterday to find that not only had Desmond been submitted, but it happened on April 6th. Which means once his EP is approved we are talking just a few weeks before he can come home. I honestly didn't even expect for him to be submitted until at least May if not June. So now we wait for all the paperwork to be completed and in approximately 10 weeks, if everything goes smoothly, our child will be coming home! :)
Imagine my surprise when I opened up my e-mail yesterday to find that not only had Desmond been submitted, but it happened on April 6th. Which means once his EP is approved we are talking just a few weeks before he can come home. I honestly didn't even expect for him to be submitted until at least May if not June. So now we wait for all the paperwork to be completed and in approximately 10 weeks, if everything goes smoothly, our child will be coming home! :)
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Making Progress
There is a flurry of activity going on around here. As I type there are many people organizing a fundraiser for the adoption of Desmond. I cannot express how grateful Michael and I are for our church family who are willing to volunteer their free time to organize this fundraiser for us. We are also overwhelmed by the generosity of our community, people who do not even know are donating some fantastic items for the silent auction. In case you don't know the details here they are:
Pasta Bar & Silent Auction
Saturday May 7th 5:30 - 8:30pm
Willow Creek Baptist Church
720 Army Post Rd
West Des Moines, IA
Cost is $5/person, $20/family
You will also notice our little thermometer has gone up a bit! We are excited to see it go up! Also, our US government paperwork has been approved. Currently it is hanging out in New Hampshire at the National Visa Center. In the next couple of days it will be sent off to the US Embassy in Seoul where work will continue on getting Desmond's visa in order. I honestly did not expect this paperwork to be approved so quickly. The USCIS told us it would be about 75 days from the day they received our paperwork until approval would come...it only took 31 days! We are still optimistic for me to travel in July to pick him up! Just a few more months of waiting to go.
Michael and I are very thankful to God for all that He has done so far. We also know that He is not done working in our lives and the life of Desmond. Thank you to each and everyone of you who are praying for us during this process.
Pasta Bar & Silent Auction
Saturday May 7th 5:30 - 8:30pm
Willow Creek Baptist Church
720 Army Post Rd
West Des Moines, IA
Cost is $5/person, $20/family
You will also notice our little thermometer has gone up a bit! We are excited to see it go up! Also, our US government paperwork has been approved. Currently it is hanging out in New Hampshire at the National Visa Center. In the next couple of days it will be sent off to the US Embassy in Seoul where work will continue on getting Desmond's visa in order. I honestly did not expect this paperwork to be approved so quickly. The USCIS told us it would be about 75 days from the day they received our paperwork until approval would come...it only took 31 days! We are still optimistic for me to travel in July to pick him up! Just a few more months of waiting to go.
Michael and I are very thankful to God for all that He has done so far. We also know that He is not done working in our lives and the life of Desmond. Thank you to each and everyone of you who are praying for us during this process.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Introducing....
....Desmond Beom-Seok Barker! We can now post a picture of our little boy for all of you to see. And we have finally decided on which Irish name we are going to name him, and please refrain from calling him Desi! I'm not a huge fan of Desi, but love Desmond. (Yes we are Lost fans, but this did not have any bearing on our name pick :))
Now a couple of pictures of his cuteness!
Now a couple of pictures of his cuteness!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
It's a Boy!
Yes, we are adopting a boy! We received word last week that child we asked for will indeed be ours. I absolutely wish I could tell you his name, but we haven't got one picked out yet. This is what I can tell you about him...He is just a little over a year old. He weighs approx. 23lbs and is 30" long. I wish I could show you pictures, but we can't until all of our acceptance paperwork is filled out and sent to the agency. But trust me when I tell you he is super cute!
I have today and tomorrow off of work to just fill out paperwork for the adoption. When this all done and we are off to pick up our kiddo I'll take a picture of the stack of paperwork just so you can see how much is required!
Also this week my boss and I came to agreement that my last day will be June 2nd. Eeek! He is giving me my full three weeks of vacation after I quit, so I'll still be receiving a paycheck for the entire month of June. Hopefully our kiddo will be ready to come home at the beginning of July. I am somewhat fearful of the unknown, but I know God's timing is perfect.
We are working on some fundraisers and I should have more details ironed out in the next couple of days. In the meantime please buy some yummy coffee. If we sell 15 bags of coffee the month of March we get a coffee basket in return. The basket is made up of 4 bags of coffee, a travel mug and a bumper sticker. I would really like that travel mug because my favorite one just broke! If we meet this goal I will be giving away the bags of coffee to the people that buy the most coffee! Please check out our store by clicking on the picture to the right.
Now I am off to make sure all our acceptance paperwork is order for us to sign in front of the notary later this evening...
I have today and tomorrow off of work to just fill out paperwork for the adoption. When this all done and we are off to pick up our kiddo I'll take a picture of the stack of paperwork just so you can see how much is required!
Also this week my boss and I came to agreement that my last day will be June 2nd. Eeek! He is giving me my full three weeks of vacation after I quit, so I'll still be receiving a paycheck for the entire month of June. Hopefully our kiddo will be ready to come home at the beginning of July. I am somewhat fearful of the unknown, but I know God's timing is perfect.
We are working on some fundraisers and I should have more details ironed out in the next couple of days. In the meantime please buy some yummy coffee. If we sell 15 bags of coffee the month of March we get a coffee basket in return. The basket is made up of 4 bags of coffee, a travel mug and a bumper sticker. I would really like that travel mug because my favorite one just broke! If we meet this goal I will be giving away the bags of coffee to the people that buy the most coffee! Please check out our store by clicking on the picture to the right.
Now I am off to make sure all our acceptance paperwork is order for us to sign in front of the notary later this evening...
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
One Year Without Television
It has been a little over a year since we decided to cut the satellite and not get a digital box for our somewhat ancient television. Honestly it seems like we've never had a T.V. Here are a few changes I've noticed over the past year.
1. We have rooms in our house that we do not use. Our house is deceptively big, one might say it's kind of like a Tardis. (For those of you who've never seen Dr. Who you are totally missing out, it's a great show, and it's where I got the Tardis reference from.) While we use most of the main floor, living room, kitchen, dining room our bedroom...etc., we do not use the basement. We used to use our basement. Down there we have two more family rooms, a bedroom and bathroom. One of the family rooms has a nice fireplace (wood/gas) and that is where we used to watch T.V. Now it is the room we walk through to the let the dog out the back door. It's also the room where I occasionally walk on the treadmill that is currently parked in front of the fireplace. The other family room has a wet bar and we've NEVER used this room. It is currently getting a coat of paint in an attempt to brighten it up so that we will use it. The bedroom is sometimes used a guest bedroom.
2. The T.V. that we do have has not been turned on in over 4 months. We have a Wii, we haven't used in over 4 months. We used to have an Xbox 360 but my husband sold it to my brother because he is saving up money to buy himself a new computer.
3. We need another computer. I've noticed over the past few months that each of us wants to use the computer at the same time and it has become increasingly difficult to "share" :)
4. We watch a ton more movies and watch a series of shows at one time. For example, right now we are going through Battlestar Galactica. It's easier to watch them whenever we want and there are no commercials. We very rarely watch anything that is currently airing.
5. My house is actually cleaner and generally stays clean. I know that this will change when we bring our son home, but overall I've felt more motivated to keep things clean. Sometimes I can't sit down and relax until it's picked up and neat. Before we cut the television I would go down into the basement and ignore the rest of the house.
6. We fellowship more. Over the last year we have really built lasting friendships with other people. We tend to go out more with these friends and spend time with them.
7. We spend more time at church. Before we said no to T.V. we wouldn't really go to the mid-week bible study. There were sometimes we would go (during re-runs) but most of the time we would stay home and not make an effort. It is a little strange that we wouldn't go because our church offers a meal before the mid-week service; I have no idea why we didn't go to this before.
8. I feel more organized. I actually have time to organize things and then keep them that way. This kind of goes along with number 5.
9. My husband and I spend time learning new things and spend quality time with each other. We actually look at each other have conversations. This didn't happen very often when we did have T.V.
10. We don't miss the T.V. After the initial shock and withdrawal we have come to find out that we really don't miss having it.
I'm sure if I thought about it some more I could list some more changes that have happened over the past year. We still get weird looks from people who don't understand how we can live without a television. And sometimes when we are out and about and we pass a television we have to just stop and stare at it. It's like our brains have forgotten what one looks like. We do plan on keeping the T.V. that we do have so that on those days when I just can't take it I will park our kiddo in front of it and put in something for him to watch. Of course that is if our television even still works.....:)
1. We have rooms in our house that we do not use. Our house is deceptively big, one might say it's kind of like a Tardis. (For those of you who've never seen Dr. Who you are totally missing out, it's a great show, and it's where I got the Tardis reference from.) While we use most of the main floor, living room, kitchen, dining room our bedroom...etc., we do not use the basement. We used to use our basement. Down there we have two more family rooms, a bedroom and bathroom. One of the family rooms has a nice fireplace (wood/gas) and that is where we used to watch T.V. Now it is the room we walk through to the let the dog out the back door. It's also the room where I occasionally walk on the treadmill that is currently parked in front of the fireplace. The other family room has a wet bar and we've NEVER used this room. It is currently getting a coat of paint in an attempt to brighten it up so that we will use it. The bedroom is sometimes used a guest bedroom.
2. The T.V. that we do have has not been turned on in over 4 months. We have a Wii, we haven't used in over 4 months. We used to have an Xbox 360 but my husband sold it to my brother because he is saving up money to buy himself a new computer.
3. We need another computer. I've noticed over the past few months that each of us wants to use the computer at the same time and it has become increasingly difficult to "share" :)
4. We watch a ton more movies and watch a series of shows at one time. For example, right now we are going through Battlestar Galactica. It's easier to watch them whenever we want and there are no commercials. We very rarely watch anything that is currently airing.
5. My house is actually cleaner and generally stays clean. I know that this will change when we bring our son home, but overall I've felt more motivated to keep things clean. Sometimes I can't sit down and relax until it's picked up and neat. Before we cut the television I would go down into the basement and ignore the rest of the house.
6. We fellowship more. Over the last year we have really built lasting friendships with other people. We tend to go out more with these friends and spend time with them.
7. We spend more time at church. Before we said no to T.V. we wouldn't really go to the mid-week bible study. There were sometimes we would go (during re-runs) but most of the time we would stay home and not make an effort. It is a little strange that we wouldn't go because our church offers a meal before the mid-week service; I have no idea why we didn't go to this before.
8. I feel more organized. I actually have time to organize things and then keep them that way. This kind of goes along with number 5.
9. My husband and I spend time learning new things and spend quality time with each other. We actually look at each other have conversations. This didn't happen very often when we did have T.V.
10. We don't miss the T.V. After the initial shock and withdrawal we have come to find out that we really don't miss having it.
I'm sure if I thought about it some more I could list some more changes that have happened over the past year. We still get weird looks from people who don't understand how we can live without a television. And sometimes when we are out and about and we pass a television we have to just stop and stare at it. It's like our brains have forgotten what one looks like. We do plan on keeping the T.V. that we do have so that on those days when I just can't take it I will park our kiddo in front of it and put in something for him to watch. Of course that is if our television even still works.....:)
Thursday, January 20, 2011
A Few Updates
I know it's a big blogger no-no to say that you're sorry for being MIA for the past 6weeks, but I truly am sorry. Now that that is out of the way we can move on.
Update #1 - Holidays
My husband and I drove out to Colorado for the Christmas to visit my family. We might as well have kept driving onto Arizona because that is what it felt like. It was 60 degrees on Christmas day. I didn't even wear my coat the entire time we were there. Even at night it still felt rather balmy compared to Iowa.
I'm sad to say that we did not get to go skiing, budget and time were kind of tight. We did take our dog with us and I'm pretty sure she had a wonderful time with all the other dogs (there were 4 total). I'm not quite sure the other dogs really liked having her around. She is like the party girl, always looking for a good time. The other dogs are more like the old fuddy duddies who are in bed by 9pm. There were several occasions where she was the only one outside because none of the other dogs wanted to play with her. When we got back home she was very depressed. There was a lot of moping around with heavy sighs. She really is a moody dog.
On New Year's Eve we celebrated Christmas with Michael's family. That was a nice relaxing time. We also got our first baby gift; a Green Lantern onesie. Yep, now my husband and our kid have matching t-shirts.
Update #2 - Adoption
We are starting our home study on Tuesday! We received enough money for Christmas to pay the $2500 for the home study. This is such a huge blessing! Although I'm totally freaked out about a stranger coming into our home and asking us all kinds of invasive questions.
Once our home study is complete and approved, which takes about 6 weeks, it is then sent off to Korea. Normally we would wait until we are matched with a child, but we actually have already requested to be matched with a child on the waiting child list. The waiting child list is a list of children who have some sort of special need and are posted online to see if anyone out there is interested in adopting them into their family. I can't give you much info on the little guy we are asking to be matched with, but I can tell you he is 12 months old and is super cute. We are waiting for some genetic testing to be done, at the request of our agency. As soon as that comes back we will know 100% if we will be able to adopt him.
Our next adoption financial goal is the money for the government forms. These will cost us $890. Right now we have $145 toward this current goal. I've updated our thermometer off to the right and have added a new one for this goal. If you would like to help us reach this goal you can donate to the adoption in several ways. First is our coffee fundraiser, there is a button off to the right. Just click on the picture and it will take you to our personal page where you can purchase coffee and for every purchase we get a portion of the proceeds. Also, we have a donate button as well, just click that and you can just donate any amount you see fit. The third way you can donate is to do so directly to our agency (although this will not go towards our government forms mini-goal). Let me know if you would like to donate directly to our agency on our behalf and I will give you the scoop on how to do so. In donating to our agency on our behalf it counts as a tax deductible donation because they are a non-profit organization.
Well I think that is all for the updates right now. God has truly blessed in being able to pay for things when we need them. Thank you so much for your prayers as I know many of you are praying!
Update #1 - Holidays
My husband and I drove out to Colorado for the Christmas to visit my family. We might as well have kept driving onto Arizona because that is what it felt like. It was 60 degrees on Christmas day. I didn't even wear my coat the entire time we were there. Even at night it still felt rather balmy compared to Iowa.
I'm sad to say that we did not get to go skiing, budget and time were kind of tight. We did take our dog with us and I'm pretty sure she had a wonderful time with all the other dogs (there were 4 total). I'm not quite sure the other dogs really liked having her around. She is like the party girl, always looking for a good time. The other dogs are more like the old fuddy duddies who are in bed by 9pm. There were several occasions where she was the only one outside because none of the other dogs wanted to play with her. When we got back home she was very depressed. There was a lot of moping around with heavy sighs. She really is a moody dog.
On New Year's Eve we celebrated Christmas with Michael's family. That was a nice relaxing time. We also got our first baby gift; a Green Lantern onesie. Yep, now my husband and our kid have matching t-shirts.
Update #2 - Adoption
We are starting our home study on Tuesday! We received enough money for Christmas to pay the $2500 for the home study. This is such a huge blessing! Although I'm totally freaked out about a stranger coming into our home and asking us all kinds of invasive questions.
Once our home study is complete and approved, which takes about 6 weeks, it is then sent off to Korea. Normally we would wait until we are matched with a child, but we actually have already requested to be matched with a child on the waiting child list. The waiting child list is a list of children who have some sort of special need and are posted online to see if anyone out there is interested in adopting them into their family. I can't give you much info on the little guy we are asking to be matched with, but I can tell you he is 12 months old and is super cute. We are waiting for some genetic testing to be done, at the request of our agency. As soon as that comes back we will know 100% if we will be able to adopt him.
Our next adoption financial goal is the money for the government forms. These will cost us $890. Right now we have $145 toward this current goal. I've updated our thermometer off to the right and have added a new one for this goal. If you would like to help us reach this goal you can donate to the adoption in several ways. First is our coffee fundraiser, there is a button off to the right. Just click on the picture and it will take you to our personal page where you can purchase coffee and for every purchase we get a portion of the proceeds. Also, we have a donate button as well, just click that and you can just donate any amount you see fit. The third way you can donate is to do so directly to our agency (although this will not go towards our government forms mini-goal). Let me know if you would like to donate directly to our agency on our behalf and I will give you the scoop on how to do so. In donating to our agency on our behalf it counts as a tax deductible donation because they are a non-profit organization.
Well I think that is all for the updates right now. God has truly blessed in being able to pay for things when we need them. Thank you so much for your prayers as I know many of you are praying!
Friday, November 19, 2010
A Little Break
In case you haven't noticed I've taken just a little break from blogging. The past few weeks have been a little chaotic and there really hasn't been much time to do a lot of blogging. I have a few blog posts in my brain that will eventually be typed out and posted. One of the posts that I am working on is a Christian perspective on racial issues. I guess it's more about my perspective on racial issues and since I happen to be a Christian as well...well you get the idea; it's more about my opinion.
We are in need of some help! This is something that is really hard for me to ask for. Both my husband and I are very independent people and have a hard time asking others for help. We are just a little over halfway to our home study goal. We have $1260 in already and need another $1240 to be able to continue onto the next step in the adoption process.
There are a few ways you can help us out. There are two links off to the right. One is a donate button for those who just wish to donate to us directly. The other button is for our coffee fundraiser. This button will take you directly to our coffee page where you can shop for some fantastic coffee. We get $5 for every bag of coffee that is purchased. I have it on good authority (my dad) that the coffee is excellent. I would like to point out that my father worked for a coffee company for 20+ years, and he thinks it's great coffee. Also, they have really fast shipping.
The other way you can help is if you attend church with us you can donate to the adoption fund that has been set up. This adoption fund is not necessarily just for us, however, we are the only ones right now that are going through the process.
If you can think of other ways you can be of help to us please let us know. Perhaps you would like to donate goods that we can sell, or maybe host a fundraiser. We are open to all kinds of ideas.
Thanks for praying for us!
We are in need of some help! This is something that is really hard for me to ask for. Both my husband and I are very independent people and have a hard time asking others for help. We are just a little over halfway to our home study goal. We have $1260 in already and need another $1240 to be able to continue onto the next step in the adoption process.
There are a few ways you can help us out. There are two links off to the right. One is a donate button for those who just wish to donate to us directly. The other button is for our coffee fundraiser. This button will take you directly to our coffee page where you can shop for some fantastic coffee. We get $5 for every bag of coffee that is purchased. I have it on good authority (my dad) that the coffee is excellent. I would like to point out that my father worked for a coffee company for 20+ years, and he thinks it's great coffee. Also, they have really fast shipping.
The other way you can help is if you attend church with us you can donate to the adoption fund that has been set up. This adoption fund is not necessarily just for us, however, we are the only ones right now that are going through the process.
If you can think of other ways you can be of help to us please let us know. Perhaps you would like to donate goods that we can sell, or maybe host a fundraiser. We are open to all kinds of ideas.
Thanks for praying for us!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Blessings
Early last week I was a little bit discouraged, $30,000 is such a huge amount of money. I kept thinking about it as the big picture and it just kept getting me down. I will let you in on a secret about myself...I am a worrier. I worry about everything. This past week God has challenged me to give over my worries and fears to Him. One of the verses He brought to mind is:
The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you, He will be with you, He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. - Deuteronomy 31:8
After I confessed my sin of worry to the Lord blessings came pouring in! Saturday we received the first donation to our adoption fund. This donation came from a very unexpected source and when I opened up the envelope I cried. The person who gave us this money doesn't have much to give. It was a great sacrifice on their part.
Yesterday we received a rather large donation that we were not expecting. With that donation we are now halfway to paying for our home study, which is $2500. We now have $1250 towards our adoption! Also yesterday it was mentioned to us that our church has set up an Adoption Assistance fund to help with those who need assistance with adoption. This is exciting because it is there to help with anyone in the congregation who has chosen to adopt.
My husband and I are humbled by those who are willing to help us out, whether it be by donation of money or time. The Lord is teaching us so much through this process. I am truly excited to see what else God has in store for us. It is only through Him that all things are possible no matter how small or large they may be!
The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you, He will be with you, He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. - Deuteronomy 31:8
After I confessed my sin of worry to the Lord blessings came pouring in! Saturday we received the first donation to our adoption fund. This donation came from a very unexpected source and when I opened up the envelope I cried. The person who gave us this money doesn't have much to give. It was a great sacrifice on their part.
Yesterday we received a rather large donation that we were not expecting. With that donation we are now halfway to paying for our home study, which is $2500. We now have $1250 towards our adoption! Also yesterday it was mentioned to us that our church has set up an Adoption Assistance fund to help with those who need assistance with adoption. This is exciting because it is there to help with anyone in the congregation who has chosen to adopt.
My husband and I are humbled by those who are willing to help us out, whether it be by donation of money or time. The Lord is teaching us so much through this process. I am truly excited to see what else God has in store for us. It is only through Him that all things are possible no matter how small or large they may be!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Five Years Ago...
....I married the most wonderful and amazing man. On October 29, 2005 at 2pm in the afternoon I married my best friend. We had met just 9 months previous, started dating 3 months after meeting. He professed his undying love for me just 10 days after we started dating. We were married just under 6 months later.
If you were a guest at our wedding you will recall how short the ceremony was; 10 minutes. I walked down the aisle at 2pm and we walked back up the aisle as Mr. and Mrs. at 2:10pm. If you were just a few minutes late, you missed it :). We had several comments that it was the shortest wedding that one had ever been to.
Since we have been married I have fallen more in love with my husband. We really didn't know each other all that well and it has been a great joy learning and getting to know my husband on a much deeper level. I am truly grateful for my husband and the way he challenges me to grow and to try out new things. Most of all I am grateful to the Lord for allowing such a wonderful man be apart of my life.
If you were a guest at our wedding you will recall how short the ceremony was; 10 minutes. I walked down the aisle at 2pm and we walked back up the aisle as Mr. and Mrs. at 2:10pm. If you were just a few minutes late, you missed it :). We had several comments that it was the shortest wedding that one had ever been to.
Since we have been married I have fallen more in love with my husband. We really didn't know each other all that well and it has been a great joy learning and getting to know my husband on a much deeper level. I am truly grateful for my husband and the way he challenges me to grow and to try out new things. Most of all I am grateful to the Lord for allowing such a wonderful man be apart of my life.
Friday, October 22, 2010
October is Almost Over
Can you believe it? Where has this month gone? Matter of fact where has 2010 gone? Doesn't it seem that when one gets older time seems to fly by more quickly? October is my most favorite month out of the other 11. (February is my second because it is the coldest, followed by December because of the holidays.) I love the cooler temps, I love pulling out my sweaters and buying new ones. Although this year has been unseasonably warm, I am hoping that means February is unseasonably cold! (You can call me crazy but I LOVE winter and the cold!)
This October has been a busy one for us in the Barker household. There has just been so much going on. Most of it revolves around an upcoming family wedding, I love fall weddings, and an upcoming wedding which I am doing flowers for. I have to say that decorating for weddings in the fall is sooooo much fun! Everything else has been pretty much adoption stuff.
Speaking of adoption stuff, here is a quick update on how things are going. I am stalking bulletin boards reading all about how other people are travelling to get their cute little babies. My husband could have TB (long story) but probably doesn't and the doctors "just want to be sure." We plan on finishing the rest of our initial paperwork tomorrow and send that off. We would like to start our home study before Christmas. I added a "donate" button off to the right of this post, so it's even easier for you to donate to our adoption. Two fundraisers are in the works in addition to the coffee fundraiser...once again the button is to the right of this post. I personally like the coffee fundraiser because you get great coffee and we get $5/bag of coffee sold. Check them out and help us bring home baby Barker. There are also a couple of blog posts in works for raising awareness about international adoption and the costs associated with it as well as some info about the country of South Korea.
Sorry for the rabbit trail....I was talking about October...
Another thing that I love about October is that my husband and I were married in October. Yes coming up on October 29th we will celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. I seriously can't believe how fast time flies. In case you were wondering we aren't doing anything for our anniversary, funds are tight right now with the adoption. We might make it out to dinner to Jimmy John's since that seems to be our favorite place to eat right now, probably because it's good and fairly cheap. I know, we are soooo romantic.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the best things about October...Halloween CANDY!! I could eat a pound of candy corn if given the opportunity. It's a good thing I am not allowed such opportunity, plus it might be a little bit awkward if I was at someones house and I ate ALL of their candy corn.
What are some of your favorite things about October?
This October has been a busy one for us in the Barker household. There has just been so much going on. Most of it revolves around an upcoming family wedding, I love fall weddings, and an upcoming wedding which I am doing flowers for. I have to say that decorating for weddings in the fall is sooooo much fun! Everything else has been pretty much adoption stuff.
Speaking of adoption stuff, here is a quick update on how things are going. I am stalking bulletin boards reading all about how other people are travelling to get their cute little babies. My husband could have TB (long story) but probably doesn't and the doctors "just want to be sure." We plan on finishing the rest of our initial paperwork tomorrow and send that off. We would like to start our home study before Christmas. I added a "donate" button off to the right of this post, so it's even easier for you to donate to our adoption. Two fundraisers are in the works in addition to the coffee fundraiser...once again the button is to the right of this post. I personally like the coffee fundraiser because you get great coffee and we get $5/bag of coffee sold. Check them out and help us bring home baby Barker. There are also a couple of blog posts in works for raising awareness about international adoption and the costs associated with it as well as some info about the country of South Korea.
Sorry for the rabbit trail....I was talking about October...
Another thing that I love about October is that my husband and I were married in October. Yes coming up on October 29th we will celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. I seriously can't believe how fast time flies. In case you were wondering we aren't doing anything for our anniversary, funds are tight right now with the adoption. We might make it out to dinner to Jimmy John's since that seems to be our favorite place to eat right now, probably because it's good and fairly cheap. I know, we are soooo romantic.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the best things about October...Halloween CANDY!! I could eat a pound of candy corn if given the opportunity. It's a good thing I am not allowed such opportunity, plus it might be a little bit awkward if I was at someones house and I ate ALL of their candy corn.
What are some of your favorite things about October?
Monday, October 11, 2010
First Fundraiser
Sorry to be talking about adoption all the time, but it just so happens that is what's on my mind. So in an effort not to bore you I will make this post short and right to the point.
We have started our first fundraiser! It's really easy. If you love coffee please hop on over to here or click on the the icon to the right and buy some. We get a portion from the sale of whatever you buy. Seriously, how easy is that?
We have started our first fundraiser! It's really easy. If you love coffee please hop on over to here or click on the the icon to the right and buy some. We get a portion from the sale of whatever you buy. Seriously, how easy is that?
Friday, October 8, 2010
Adoption Update
I am going to try to post an adoption update at least once a week; the key word is try. We got our packet of paperwork from the adoption agency at the beginning of last week. We've already gotten through most of it. We have to submit this round of paperwork for home study. They will review the paperwork and then we can go forward with our home study.
Last Friday we got our fingerprints for our FBI background check. We mailed those off right away because it takes about 8 weeks for the government to pry into our not so sordid past. We also went last week to get our physicals done, we are still waiting for some test results for that to be all completed.
Next up on the list is to finish all the essay questions, we started on it last Saturday, but there are so many and after about an hour my head hurt. We will try and get this completed by the time our test results come back from our physicals. Once we get our paperwork completed we will wait for our background checks to come back as well as attend some parenting classes. I am hoping to schedule our home study for sometime in December, but it will probably be January since we have to pay for the home study before we can schedule it. I don't think that we will have the money until after Christmas.
Speaking of money... I have come up with some fundraising ideas so check back in about a week or so to see how you can help!
I think that is about it for the time being. If you have any questions about the adoption let me know, I'm more than happy to talk about it. Also if you would like to help us out please let me know; any type of help is greatly appreciated.
Last Friday we got our fingerprints for our FBI background check. We mailed those off right away because it takes about 8 weeks for the government to pry into our not so sordid past. We also went last week to get our physicals done, we are still waiting for some test results for that to be all completed.
Next up on the list is to finish all the essay questions, we started on it last Saturday, but there are so many and after about an hour my head hurt. We will try and get this completed by the time our test results come back from our physicals. Once we get our paperwork completed we will wait for our background checks to come back as well as attend some parenting classes. I am hoping to schedule our home study for sometime in December, but it will probably be January since we have to pay for the home study before we can schedule it. I don't think that we will have the money until after Christmas.
Speaking of money... I have come up with some fundraising ideas so check back in about a week or so to see how you can help!
I think that is about it for the time being. If you have any questions about the adoption let me know, I'm more than happy to talk about it. Also if you would like to help us out please let me know; any type of help is greatly appreciated.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
A New Adventure: An Announcement
Oh my goodness! Can I just tell you how busy we have been? It's a rhetorical question, I'm gonna tell you whether or not you give me permission. We've been super busy. I suppose I won't go into detail and list off all the things that have made us busy. Not that I'm complaining (okay maybe I am just a little bit) but I am a person who likes to take one thing at a time, get half done and move onto the next thing. Being busy is just not that conducive to me being a procrastinator and being able to read whole books in one weekend.
Remember last month when I said that I would like to lead a more simple life? Well I can tell you right now that simple life will probably never happen. I know by now that most of you think that our (my husband's and mine) big announcement is that I'm probably pregnant, well you would only be partially right. The big announcement is.....we are ADOPTING a child from South Korea! At least we hope to adopt a child from South Korea, we might get swallowed up by all the paperwork to never be heard from again.
We have started the paperwork process and hope to get that completed in the next 2 months. Then we will have a home study where we are asked all kinds of personal questions and someone comes to "inspect" our house(eeek!). After our home study we wait, and then wait a little bit more before a child is referred to us. Then we have to come up with a massive amount of money if we accept the referred child. After we accept the referred child he's ours, only we have to wait some more before we can go and bring him back to the States.
I'm referring to our child as "him" as the child referred to us will most likely be a boy around the age of 9 months when we finally arrive home with him.
There are still many unknowns for us like MONEY. We cannot afford the hefty price tag on our own. We will be applying for grants, doing some fund raisers, praying and probably a little bit of begging and pleading. But I do want all of you to know that both my husband and I feel 100% confident that this what God has in store for us. We know that He will provide the money even though we cannot seem to comprehend how.
We are already praying for our child. We do not know if he is born yet, or if he has even been conceived. We are praying for him, his birth parents and his foster parents. We are praying that he will be healthy and that his birth mom will have a good pregnancy. We are also praying that he will have loving foster parents who will be attentive and see to his needs. We are praying that we might be a testimony to his foster parents when we go to South Korea to meet our little one for the first time.
I plan on sharing more information, especially fund raising info, in near future. In the meantime we would appreciate your prayers.
Remember last month when I said that I would like to lead a more simple life? Well I can tell you right now that simple life will probably never happen. I know by now that most of you think that our (my husband's and mine) big announcement is that I'm probably pregnant, well you would only be partially right. The big announcement is.....we are ADOPTING a child from South Korea! At least we hope to adopt a child from South Korea, we might get swallowed up by all the paperwork to never be heard from again.
We have started the paperwork process and hope to get that completed in the next 2 months. Then we will have a home study where we are asked all kinds of personal questions and someone comes to "inspect" our house(eeek!). After our home study we wait, and then wait a little bit more before a child is referred to us. Then we have to come up with a massive amount of money if we accept the referred child. After we accept the referred child he's ours, only we have to wait some more before we can go and bring him back to the States.
I'm referring to our child as "him" as the child referred to us will most likely be a boy around the age of 9 months when we finally arrive home with him.
There are still many unknowns for us like MONEY. We cannot afford the hefty price tag on our own. We will be applying for grants, doing some fund raisers, praying and probably a little bit of begging and pleading. But I do want all of you to know that both my husband and I feel 100% confident that this what God has in store for us. We know that He will provide the money even though we cannot seem to comprehend how.
We are already praying for our child. We do not know if he is born yet, or if he has even been conceived. We are praying for him, his birth parents and his foster parents. We are praying that he will be healthy and that his birth mom will have a good pregnancy. We are also praying that he will have loving foster parents who will be attentive and see to his needs. We are praying that we might be a testimony to his foster parents when we go to South Korea to meet our little one for the first time.
I plan on sharing more information, especially fund raising info, in near future. In the meantime we would appreciate your prayers.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Aha! Ahhh!
So here is some other exciting news! Awhile ago I was asked to film an Aha Moment for the Mutual of Omaha. I was very nervous about going in there and just being a blubbering idiot. It seemed to come out okay although I totally forgot to mention my blog address, that is how the ad agency for the campaign found me, and to mention anything about my faith in Jesus Christ. Yep, I totally blew it on that aspect. I really had good intentions and I kind of played out in my head what I would say. However, when the actually filming began my mind went blank. You can tell in the video where they had to edit out my really long pauses.
I got an e-mail form the ad agency handling the campaign letting me know I was selected for voting. Here is what the e-mail said:
"Congratulations! Your story has been selected as one of the semi-finalists. Your aha moment will appear alongside 74 others where visitors to the site will have the chance to vote for their favorites.
The first round of voting will begin on October 1st and continue through October 15th. After the first round, the top-25 vote getters will win an ipod Nano and move on to the final round of voting, which will begin on October 18th and end on October 31st. Check the website on October 18th to see which moments made the top-25. The top-10 favorite aha moments will be featured in Mutual of Omaha’s 2011 nationwide TV ads, which will begin airing early next year."
Here is the deal, I want you to vote for me. (You can do that here.*) I don't necessarily feel the need to be in the top 10 and be in the commercial because I didn't mention my blog in my video so really not going to build that much traffic to my blog, although you never know. What I really want is to be in the top 25 so that I can win an i-pod to raffle off and put the money from the raffle into our adoption fund. (Doesn't that sound like a good idea? I can't take credit for it, it was my husband's.) Please, please vote for my video. I believe you can only vote once a day, so vote today,then tomorrow and the day after that...
*Their website seems to be having some trouble, just refresh your browser and you should be able to vote.
I got an e-mail form the ad agency handling the campaign letting me know I was selected for voting. Here is what the e-mail said:
"Congratulations! Your story has been selected as one of the semi-finalists. Your aha moment will appear alongside 74 others where visitors to the site will have the chance to vote for their favorites.
The first round of voting will begin on October 1st and continue through October 15th. After the first round, the top-25 vote getters will win an ipod Nano and move on to the final round of voting, which will begin on October 18th and end on October 31st. Check the website on October 18th to see which moments made the top-25. The top-10 favorite aha moments will be featured in Mutual of Omaha’s 2011 nationwide TV ads, which will begin airing early next year."
Here is the deal, I want you to vote for me. (You can do that here.*) I don't necessarily feel the need to be in the top 10 and be in the commercial because I didn't mention my blog in my video so really not going to build that much traffic to my blog, although you never know. What I really want is to be in the top 25 so that I can win an i-pod to raffle off and put the money from the raffle into our adoption fund. (Doesn't that sound like a good idea? I can't take credit for it, it was my husband's.) Please, please vote for my video. I believe you can only vote once a day, so vote today,then tomorrow and the day after that...
*Their website seems to be having some trouble, just refresh your browser and you should be able to vote.
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